Black Friday is dangerous for the environment, consumerist pressure on appliances generates waste

Also this year the long-awaited Friday of the most fruitful business has arrived, Black Friday, increasingly considered as a holiday, at least for the wallet. Even if the reverse can actually happen, with the risk that the hand may escape. But above all we have a potential environmental damage. The current sustainability of consumption is in fact excessive, feeding it with a similar consumerist push is a problem. 

According to the UN, the world produces as much as 50 million tonnes of electronic and electrical waste (e-waste) a year, and only 20% of this is formally recycled. 

The problem is that, according to some studies of the Eurobarometer, the 77% of EU citizens themselves would like to avoid new purchases and waste, but changing old appliances instead of repairing them is much more advantageous. In short, these tools can be used only for a certain period and not beyond, having a planned deadline. 

Also, the online business model creates more delivery and packages, causing a huge impact to the climate. 

To counter this phenomenon, in some countries Green Friday has spread, aimed at avoiding packaging and bags in various stores, selling the loose stuff. Green Friday aims to raise awareness about waste reduction and to encourage the sale of bulk products, following a fashion born in France in 2017. But reducing bags is not enough. 

Anton Lazarus, from the European Environmental Bureau, warned «the level of consumption we have at the moment is totally unsustainable». Lazarus and his colleagues at the EEB advocate an alternative to Black Friday too: «buy Nothing Day is about making a decision other than buying something new. Can you borrow the thing you need instead? Or repair something you already have? These should be the first options before deciding to buy something new».