'Samsung Galaxy Note 7' Recall Updates; Recall Could Mean Environmental Disaster ‘Greenpeace’ Warns
The Samsung Note 7 debacle seems endless. With already two recalls, reports of overheating, and Samsung’s directive to stop production of the smartphones because of the possibility to catch fire, Samsung Galaxy Note 7 kept mum about how it plans to dispose of the smartphone that is apparently bursting into flames.
United States Environmental Protection Agency reports that Samsung will take part in sustainable materials management program. This program requires companies to send recalled devices to certified recycling centers, which aims to preserve the environment. In the United States and Canada, Samsung usually works with the non-profit Call2Recycle. However, there have been no reports of drop-ins from any Samsung smartphones.
While Samsung holds off the announcement of how it plans to dispose of its Samsung Galaxy Note 7 recalled units, Greenpeace, a non-government environmental organization is apprehensive about disposing of these flaming smartphones. “If the South Korean tech company chooses to dump them, it would create the equivalent of about 28 shipping containers of toxic waste, according to the environmental advocacy group,” reports CNN Money.
The Senior IT campaigner at Greenpeace said that Samsung is now in a position where they have a good chance to be different from other companies by being a good example in recovering and reusing materials. There are about 4.3 million devices and steps need to be taking to prevent an environmental disaster to happen.
However, Samsung said on Tuesday that it was considering Greenpeace’s contention, but refused to comment. The environmental organization is simply asking Samsung not to ditch or burn the recalled devices to minimize the effect it could bring to the environment.
Samsung Galaxy Note 7 recalls are unfortunate for the company that produces it, however, it should not be the case with the environment. This is precisely the point that Greenpeace wants to impart - that Samsung be upfront with how it plans to dispose of the 4.3 million devices that were recalled.
