The Indian economy is growing at a fast rate. With rapid industrialization and development, citizens’ aspirations for a higher standard of living is increasing and so is the demand for latest technologies or gadgets. A recent report shows that there has been an exponential growth in the utilization of electronic devices world over. According to the Global E-Waste Monitor 2020, India is producing 3.23 million metric tons of e-waste annually. A further increase in the use of electronic devices is guaranteed to exacerbate this problem in the near future.
Additionally, as per the goals of Conference of Parties (COP), urgent action is needed to secure global net zero targets by mid-century to keep 1.5 degrees within reach. While most countries have been ambitious to announce targets, real world action is a far cry from what it needs to be. India has made announcements at COP26 to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2070 and reduce carbon emissions by 1 million tons by 2030. However, achieving it may be an uphill battle.
In order to reach the global target and reduce emissions, one of the strategies that is widely embraced, is that of introducing Electric Vehicles (EVs). EVs can be considered as a replacement for conventional hydrocarbon-based transport systems. Moreover, Li-ion batteries (LIBs) play a critical role in the working of EVs. Taking cue from the current trends, it is clear that the demand for LIBs will eventually increase and is likely to outstrip resource supplies in the near future. This is because lithium, which is a major component used in LIBs is a scarce resource is limited in supply. At the other end of the value chain, we have the problem of safe disposal of end of life batteries containing critical raw minerals.
Electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) turn into e-waste once they are discarded by their owner as waste without the intent of reuse. These comprise of a large variety of products and are divided into 54 different product-centric categories. E-waste largely comprises of metals, plastics and glass which, once salvaged, provides precious metals such as copper, iron, tin, nickel, lead, zinc, silver, gold and palladium. The major sources of e-waste are individual consumers, Multi-National Companies (MNCs), public and private enterprises, manufacturing defects and imports. The World Bank report points out that the world is expected to generate 3.40 billion tons of waste annually as compared to the current generation of 2.01 billion tons. Besides this, proper management from production to disposal of e-waste is crucial for utilization of the precious components that it contains. Given the economic opportunity they represent; these two ends of the supply chain therefore need to be seen as part of a holistic strategy on critical minerals. While the notion of “critical minerals” is relatively new in India compared to other emerging economies, evolving a perspective on the recycling industry is an environmental imperative.
Recently, many nations in Asia such as China, India, Japan, Korea have implemented e-waste legislations in order to regulate e-waste management. In India, the e-waste management is governed by e-waste (Management) Rules 2016, enacted by MoEF&CC, GoI. The rule also extends its purview to include components, consumables, parts and spares of EEE, along with their products. The objective of the Rules is to channelize the e-waste generated in the country towards authorized dismantlers and recyclers. The Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) mechanism is a mandatory component of the 2016 Rules which is at a nascent stage in the Indian sub-continent.
In this regard, following are some actions that could be undertaken:
First, upscaling of informal sectors. The informal sector inevitably plays a crucial role in e-waste management in developing countries. It is responsible for 95% of e-waste recycling in India. Although, informal and formal sectors are interlinked, the former has certain competitive advantages in specific stages of the e-waste recycling chain, namely collection, dismantling and parts of the pre-processing phase. There is an urgent need for mapping the internal dynamics of informal economies.
Second, is the role of circular economy. E-waste generated should be considered an important aspect with respect to circular economy. The presence of hazardous substances and rare or valuable e-waste creates the need for recycling and waste management in an environmentally friendly manner. This will in turn help prevent the release of harmful substances into the environment and avert the loss of natural and economic resources. By improving collection of e-waste and recycling practices, significant amounts of critical raw minerals will re-enter the manufacturing process and will ultimately lead to a reduction in fresh extraction.
To add to this note is the concept of e-waste EcoPark. It is an area where scientific and environmentally safe recycling, refurbishing, dismantling and manufacturing is carried out. Being an integrated facility, it accommodates various handlers in the ecosystem such as e-waste re-furbishers, dismantlers, recyclers, plastic waste processors and others under the same roof. EcoPark in Hong Kong, China can be taken as an example constituting an area of 140,000 m2. The facility disperses and recycles used electrical appliances and supplies recovered materials to other parts of the electronics supply chain.
In addition, multi-stakeholder engagements could play a key role in the management of e-waste. For instance, building a tangible infrastructure and knowledge base to develop more cost-effective e-waste recycling technologies and the distribution of e-waste solutions to interested parties in partnership with the Government, industry representatives, and academia can empower informal e-waste recyclers in the country.
Most countries do not include the full scope of e-waste management and its implementation suffers from a lack of successive regulations. The integration of the above-mentioned problems provides an overview of the various areas where the legal framework and law enforcement need to be amended.
These aforementioned transitions would gradually have a snowball effect on the economy. Thus, it is important to recognize and reverse the flow of material in the manufacturing system and to transform into a circular economy. In general, G20 countries are responsible for 75% of the material use and 80% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, G20 countries are playing a crucial role towards increasing resource efficiency and circularity of materials. With keen involvement of the parties, e-waste generated can be converted to wealth.
(Views expressed are the author’s own and don’t necessarily reflect those of ICRIER.)
The GAIA Perspectives 