A new era of Indian Chemical Industry : Electronics chemicals

The electrical and electronics equipment (EEE) industry is among the world's largest industrial sectors, generating over $1.7 trillion in global trade of electronics products each year.

The estimated number of chemicals utilized in the production of electronics, including computers and mobile phones, continues to rise. More than 500 different chemical substances are identified in the manufacturing of electronic components, and some electronic products contain over 1,000 chemicals. This chemical complexity, along with the large quantity of chemicals in both newly manufactured and discarded electronics, complicates efforts to mitigate their environmental and public health impacts.

• DANGEROUS CHEMICALS IN ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS

There is agreement among both non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and industry associations that electronics contain hazardous chemicals that should be eliminated from the supply chain. In 2020, the Dutch NGO Electronics Watch released a guidance for public buyers titled “How to Protect Workers from Chemical Hazards in the Electronics Supply Chain”, which offers practical steps that public buyers can take to help protect workers from chemical hazards in their electronics supply chains. This guidance recommends eliminating 12 chemicals of concern from the electronics supply chain,which includes nine chemicalsof concern also identified by the trade association Clean Electronics Production Network.

• REGULATORY INITIATIVES IMPACTING CHEMICAL USE IN THE ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY.

The United Nations Environment Program recently conducted a survey of global laws, revealing that most legally mandated initiatives related to electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) are primarily enforced in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. These laws influencing the use of hazardous chemicals in electronics fall into three categories:

1. Regulations targeting chemicals used in electronics products or manufacturing processes (e.g., China’s VOC regulations).
2. Laws requiring the disclosure or notification of chemical content in products, such as California’s Proposition 65 or the EU's SCIP notification.
3. Legislation concerning the recycling and disposal of electronics at the end of their life cycle, like the EU’s Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive.

Additionally, many suppliers within the electronics supply chain are adopting non-legal measures to reduce the use of hazardous chemicals, including Restricted Substances Lists (RSLs), Declarable Substances Lists (DSLs), ecolabels, and safer chemicals registries.

• Initiatives to Reduce E-Waste Generation

Electronic devices follow a life cycle of manufacture, use, and recycling/disposal. The rapid obsolescence of products in the electronics industry has led to a significant increase in global e-waste generation, highlighting the urgent need to use less hazardous materials and improve end-of-life recycling processes. Nearly 50 million tonnes of e-waste are generated annually, with less than 20% being recycled. The estimated amount of e-waste produced per person annually ranges from 6-7 kg globally.

In the past decade, the electronics industry has moved from merely collecting and disposing of e-waste to implementing more comprehensive recycling and reutilization initiatives to prevent chemicals and materials from entering the waste stream. Efforts are also being made to promote frameworks and registries of chemicals and materials that have been fully disclosed and vetted for human health and environmental safety. E-waste contains toxic substances such as mercury, brominated flame retardants (BFRs), chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), radioactive materials, and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs). In 2020, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) published a detailed survey of existing laws, initiatives, standards, and programs worldwide aimed at addressing the e-waste issue.

• CONCLUSION

The electronics industry has the potential to impact consumer and worker health, the environment, and climate change. The increasing volume of chemicals used in this sector heightens the urgency to develop safer and more sustainable materials. To enhance the overall safety and sustainability of the electronics industry, it is essential to avoid using hazardous chemicals throughout the supply chain, utilize chemically optimized product registries, and design products for material reuse. These proactive measures should be widely adopted across the electronics supply chain.

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