E-Waste: A Destructive Tsunami

Hello and a sleepy, smoggy Namaste from New Delhi!

On #worldsoilday , let us revisit this #tsunami and understand the challenges to collectively act on #sustainablesolutions , before it gets too late.

E-Waste refers to all items of?electronic and electrical equipment (EEE)?and its parts that have been?discarded?by their owner as waste without the intent of re-use. India is the?third-largest e-waste generator in the world after China and the USA (Global E-waste Monitor 2020). 95% of e-waste?in India is?recycled by the informal sector

Toxins’ harmful health impact on humans includes damage to the brain, heart, liver, kidneys and skeletal system. They can also have a significant effect on neurological and reproductive systems, resulting in sickness and birth abnormalities. Of many toxic heavy metals, lead is the most widely used in electronic devices for various purposes, resulting in a variety of health hazards due to environmental contamination. Lead enters biological systems via food, water, air, and soil. Children are particularly vulnerable to lead poisoning – more so than adults because they absorb more lead from their environment.

Only 22.7 per cent of the e-waste out of the total 10,14,961.21 tonnes generated in 2019-20 in India was collected, dismantled, and recycled or disposed off. This e-waste is comprised of 21 types of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) notified Under the E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2016.?

The E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2016 extend the responsibility to producers to manage a system of e-waste collection, storage, transportation, and environmentally sound dismantling and recycling through Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) authorisation. The rules also promote and encourage the establishment of an efficient e-waste collection mechanism.?However, the data show that not even 25 per cent of the e-waste generated is being managed properly. Experts say that like untreated solid waste, e-waste must be getting dumped in open spaces and water bodies.?The contaminated water getting into Agricultural Soil is a much bigger issue threatening Food Security among others than meets the eye.

For the recycling of e-waste, India heavily depends on the unorganized sector as only a handful of organized e-waste recycling facilities are available. Over 95% of the e-waste is treated and processed in the majority of urban slums of the country, where untrained workers carry out the dangerous procedures without personal protective equipment, which are detrimental not only to their health but also to the environment.

The data provided by the Ministry of Environment show there are 468 authorised dismantlers/recyclers in 22 States having a processing capacity of 13,85,932.22 metric tonnes per annum. Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, and Haryana are among the States that have a bigger capacity to dismantle and recycle e-waste.

Maharashtra has the highest number (116) of authorised dismantlers and recyclers.?The number of limited dismantlers and recyclers and their concentration in urban areas is a major cause for concern. This is one of the reasons that all e-waste generated is not handled properly.??E-waste is anything with a plug, electric cord, or battery (including electrical and electronic equipment) from toasters to toothbrushes, smartphones, fridges, laptops, and LED televisions that have reached the end of their life, as well as the components that make up these end-of-life products.

The report titled ‘Waste-Wise Cities: Best Practices in Municipal Solid Waste Management’ by NITI Aayog and Centre for Science and Environment, published last year, states that the use of electrical and electronic equipment has witnessed explosive growth and so is e-waste.

The report highlighted that e-waste typically does not feature in the list of municipal solid waste and therefore not a direct mandate for the cities to collect, transport, and manage. As a proactive measure, Government of India has notified?E-waste (management) rules 2022,?which will come into force from?1 April next year?and apply to every manufacturer, producer refurbisher, dismantler and recycler of e-waste.

Key provisions of the Rules:?

• Restricted the use of hazardous substances?(such as lead, mercury, and cadmium) in manufacturing electrical and electronic equipment that have an adverse impact on human health and the environment.
• Increased the range of electronic goods?covered e.g., laptops, mobile, cameras etc.
• Targets fixed:?Producers of electronic goods have to ensure?at least 60% of their electronic waste?is collected and?recycled by 2023?with targets to increase them to?70% and 80%?in 2024 and 2025, respectively.
• Companies will report these on an online portal.
• Extended Producer Responsibility Certificates?(similar to carbon credit mechanism): This will allow the offsetting of e-waste responsibility to a third party.
• ‘Environmental compensation’?to be provided by the companies that don’t meet their target.
• Role of State Governments:?They will earmark industrial space for e-waste dismantling and recycling facilities, undertaking industrial skill development and establishing measures for protecting the health and safety of workers engaged in the dismantling and recycling facilities for e-waste.
• Role of manufacturers:
• Make the end product recyclable
• A component made by different manufacturers be compatible with each other
• Role of Central Pollution Control Board: It shall conduct random sampling of electrical and electronic equipment placed on the market to monitor and verify the compliance of reduction of hazardous substances provisions.

The ball is obviously in our courts as #sufferers, #individuals including #familymembers, the most #vulnerablebaseofthepyramid people, collectively as #neighborhoods, #societies, #regions, #zones, #nations and #theWorldasonebigfamily. #businesses have a #bigrole, #responsibilityandleadership to #acceleratetheaction using their financial as well as non-financial resources support.

#Nosubstitutesnosecondchances #ACTherethereeverywhere #NOW

Content Courtesy:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2963874/;

https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/data-stories/data-focus/around-78-of-indias-e-waste-is-not-being-collected-or-disposed-by-the-government/article65406820.ece