Evolution of E-Waste Recycling
E waste recycling started in EU when they identified some materials used in electronics are hazardous. This was back in 2002. India started active e waste management from 2012
Need for E-Waste Management
- Avoid Pollution
- Plastic casing in computers has flame retardants. Burning may release bromine that is harmful
- PCB board has flame retardant burning of which can release harmful chemicals
- Improper recycling of Picture tube has risk for lead leaching into soil
- Extraction of Useful Material for Reuse
- 2023 450 Bn worth of electronics will be consumed. 20% will go to waste -> this is input material for other industry like rare earth elements
- Touch screen of smartphone is comprised of rare earth elements. So, recycling is beneficial in extracting rare earth elements that are sparse in material. Likewise useful materials can be extracted from electronic components: Resistor (Carbon, TaN), capacitors (ceramic), diodes (silicon, Ge), transistors (Si)
E-Waste Management Scenario in India vs World
- Global E-waste in 2019: 53.6 MT. India generated 3.23 MT in 2019. Global e waste in 2030 expected to be 75 MT
- Per capita waste generation in India is 2.4 kg/capita vs USA 21 kg/capita and EU is 16.2 kg/capita
- Out of 53.6 MT of e-waste only 17.4% is recycled
- India is 3rd largest generator of e-waste that is expected to grow at 18% YoY. 70% waste is generated from 10 cities
- EU identified 640 products as WEEE, India has identified 21 products (IT equipment and consumer electronics)
- 3 agencies are responsible for E-waste Management in India: Ministry for Environment Forests and Climate Change (MoEF & CC), CPCB and SPCB
E-Waste Management Rules 2016
- New e-waste management rule came into effect from 2016.
- Major stakeholders are the manufacturer, bulk consumer, collection center and recycler and refurbisher
- The 2016 rule includes periphery of product in addition to product in 2012. In 2016, additional product has been included to increase coverage to 21 from 20
- Deposit refund scheme introduced in e-waste rule wherein a portion of the sales price is retained by producer and shall be refunded to the consumer once end of life product is channelized in prescribed method. But it is not implemented
- Refurbishment has been introduced
- Any producer can do Pan-India authorization through CPCB
- 2016 rule allows producer to form producer responsibility organization
- In 2016, targets were introduced for collection. Collection target in 2017 is 10%. Expected to increase gradually to 70% in 2023. 2020 target for collection is 40%
E-waste Management Rule 2016 and BFR Implication
- Restricted substances include poly brominated biphenyles (permission limit: 1000 PPM) and poly brominated diphenyl ether (permission limit: 1000 PPM)
EPR Best Practices and India Current Scenario on EPR
- Design: Hazardous components should not be used in design. But since India largely imports electronic components, those components are not hazardous
- India is lacking in good implementation of regulations, economic instruments and promotion of new tech and best practices to support EPR
