This report investigates the global sales of electrical and electronic products and assesses the amount of waste arising from this. Quantities of e-waste generated are predicted to grow substantially in the future, both in industrialized and developing countries. Rich countries often legally or illegally divert this problem from their own backyards: the "hidden flow" of e-waste that escapes responsible collection, reuse and recycling systems causes environmental damage in the backyards and scrapyards of poorer countries.

Greenpeace is challenging manufacturers of electronic goods to take responsibility for the entire lifecycle of their products - from production, through manufacture and to the very end of their products' lives. Only in this way can we ensure that the dangerous tide of toxic e-waste can be stemmed, and that the hidden flow of e-waste does not become a problem in anybody's backyard.