E-waste (E-waste) usually includes neglected computer screens, motherboards, mobile phones, chargers, CDs, headphones, TVs, air conditioners and refrigerators. According to the Global E-waste Observatory 2017, India generates about 2 million tons of e-waste annually and ranks fifth among countries producing e-waste, after the United States, China, Japan and Germany. In 2016-2017, India processed just 0.036 metric tons of its e-waste.
About 95 percent of e-waste in India is recycled in the informal sector, in a rudimentary way. A report on electronic waste submitted by the United Nations (UN) at the World Economic Forum on January 24, 2019 indicates that the waste flow reached 48.5 metric tons in 2018 and the number is expected to double if nothing changes.
Only 20 percent of global e-waste is recycled. The UN report indicates that due to poor extraction technologies, the total recovery rate for cobalt (the metal that is in great demand for laptop, smartphones and electric car batteries) from e-waste is only 30 per cent.
The report notes that one of the recycling workers in China is already producing more cobalt (by recycling) than the country extracts in one year. Recycled minerals are also 2 to 10 times more energy efficient than molten minerals than ore
The report notes that reducing the amount of electronics entering the waste stream and improving end-of-life treatment is essential to building a more circular economy, as waste is reduced, resource conservation and the supply chain feed-back to new products.
On a positive note, media reports highlighted that the Tokyo 2020 Olympics medals will manufacture 50,000 tons of e-waste. The organizing committee will make all medals from old smartphones, laptops and other gadgets. By November 2018, organizers collected 47,488 tons of devices, nearly 8 tons of gold, silver, and bronze would be extracted to earn 5,000 medals. About 1,600 or 90 percent of Japan's municipal authorities participated in collection activities.
There are laws in India to manage e waste pickup since 2011, stipulating that only authorized and recycled operators collect e-waste. e waste collection center (Management) Regulations, 2016 implemented on October 1, 2017. More than 21 products (Table 1) are included within the jurisdiction of the Rule.
The base has also expanded its competence to components, consumables, electrical or electronic equipment (EEE) parts or parts, along with its products. The base has strengthened Extended Product Responsibility (EPR), which is the global best practice for ensuring that expired products are restored.
A new arrangement called Product Responsibility Organization (PRO) has been introduced to enhance EPR as well. Producers must meet goals, which should be 20 percent of the waste from their sales. This will increase by 10 percent annually for the next five years. The law also states that the responsibility of producers is not only to collect waste, but also to ensure that waste reaches the authorized recycling / dismantling body.
Despite the new rules that have been put in place to safely handle these dangerous materials, nearly 80 percent of electronic waste - laptops, cell phones, cameras, air conditioners, televisions and LED lights - are still seriously disrupting the health and environmental cost of polluting groundwater and soil , By the informal sector.
E-waste is growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 30 percent in the country. ASSOCHAM, one of the major trade associations in India, estimated that e-waste generation was 1.8 metric tons annually in 2016 and will reach 5.2 metric tons annually by 2020.
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