Green Computing A Way to Reduce Environmental Impacts of E-Waste in Manufacturing Companies in Meru County

The constant growth of technology has radically increased the amount of `technology waste' generated causing an increased need in necessary facilities and infrastructure to manage it. Information computing technologies (ICTs) must adopt green computing – principles, policies and strategies which aim at reducing the adverse impact on the environment and minimizing the carbon footprint to increase environmental sustainability. Most companies have not put great emphasis on the need to adopt, assess and report on the impacts of ICTs waste management for environmental sustainability. Issues surrounding green computing are overlooked when it comes to medium or small scale organizations or startup companies. This paper explores E-Waste and highlights the problems caused by E-Waste in the manufacturing sector and presents the recent approaches towards overcoming the same. The study applied a mixed-method research approach using both quantitative and qualitative data. The researchers employed exploratory and descriptive research design to discuss the findings obtained from the four Manufacturing companies in Meru County who filled an online questionnaire which was used as the data collection tool for the study. The preliminary discoveries from the study reveal that ICTs play a greater role in environmental sustainability among manufacturing companies in Meru County. The role of ICTs for environmental sustainability are deemed a necessity in enhancing flexibility and visibility in decision-making as well as in minimizing energy consumption, carbon footprint, and e-waste disposal. To cope with these problems, summarizing the electronic waste recycling practices and experience in businesses, some countermeasures, and suggestions for e-waste recycling have been highlighted in the paper. Scientific methods of disposal of e-waste should be undertaken for reducing the environmental damage. Planting trees can also help the earth recover from its damages. The paper presents green computing as one of the strategies that can be adopted to implement comprehensive E-Waste management by the Manufacturing companies and small and medium enterprises.