Whilst the production and use of electronic equipment has been growing steadily in recent years, the lifecycle of many electronic devices is decreasing. These trends have combined to produce ever-growing volumes of 'e-scrap' or electronic waste. Many countries have made significant legislative efforts to cope with these material streams, including the European Union's 2003 directive on "Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE)". This directive was designed to ensure an increasing proportion of electronic waste is recycled which, given the use of gold in electronics means a growing to potential to recycle gold from this scrap stream.

The Electronics Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC) & Global e-Sustainability Initiative (GeSI) have recently published a Joint Study on Metal Extraction focused on the sources of metals used in electronic products as well as the environmental, human rights and labor conditions associated with the extraction of these metals. The report clearly identifies that the value of gold contained in waste electronic goods is a critical component in the economic case for recycling e-waste. For example, cell phones might typically contain precious metals worth around a dollar, consisting mostly of gold. Without the recovery of this gold the economic basis for recycling would almost certainly be less robust.