Background

The Indian electronics market is among the largest in the world and is set to touch $400 billion by 2025. However, as with every great development, a dark side is inevitable.

Electronic waste or, simply, e-waste, is now the fastest growing waste stream in the world. It comprises all electronic devices such as computers, televisions, and cell phones discarded by their owners. According to the newly released The Global E-waste Monitor 2020 (GEM 2020) report, the global production of e-waste in 2019 was about 53.6 Mt (million metric tons) and is estimated to grow by 38% to reach 74 Mt in 2030. To put these figures in perspective, 53.6 Mt is equivalent to the collective weight of 82.5 crore people in kg (at the rate of 65 kg per person)!

Why should we be alarmed at these numbers? E-waste is different from other types of wastes for several reasons:

Composition 

E-waste is a complex form of waste in terms of composition. 

It generally consists of iron and steel, non-ferrous metals like copper, aluminium, silver, gold, nickel, cobalt, lead, palladium, brominated flame retardants, glass, plastic, electronic components and other materials such as wood, ceramics and rubber. Owing to its composite nature, e-waste demands a more careful approach to dismantling, segregation, reuse, and material recovery. A typical mobile phone, for instance, is a complex assembly of plastics (42%), PCBs (23%), cover case and screws (19%), LCD screen (12%), magnets (2%), vibrators (2%), and LED lights (0.03%).

Figure 1 Components and metal contents of a typical Mobile Phone (Singh et.al., 2018)

Economic potential

Given the rate at which we are depleting precious and rare mineral sources, e-waste is a vast mine for secondary materials, thereby offering significant economic value. According to GEM 2020 estimates, the global volumes of e-waste in 2019 represented an economic value to the tune of $10 billion, recovery potential of 4 Mt worth raw materials and carbon savings of about 15 Mt CO2 equivalents. Urban mining of e-waste is crucial for countries with trade imbalance, such as India, to regulate raw material imports.

Health and Environmental Hazards

In the absence of formal means of processing, e-waste poses severe health and environmental risks. Several studies have evidenced traces of toxic materials in human bodies, soil, and water sources, at sites where e-waste is processed through informal and crude methods. While individuals involved in informal recycling are faced with health issues for direct exposure to toxic elements, water and soil toxicity can affect the larger population through contamination of the food cycle.

Political, financial, and social constraints

Only less than half of the countries have initiated some form of e-waste policy or regulation or legislation. And, in many countries where e-waste regulation is in place, outcomes are not on expected lines because of laxity in enforcement. Poor awareness among stakeholders, unavailability of reliable data, dominance of the informal sector, lack of political will and foresight, inadequate access to technology and capital, are often cited as major barriers to effective e-waste management.

E-waste generation: where does India stand?

One of the earliest attempts of estimating e-waste inventory in India was done by Manufacturers’ Association for Information Technology (MAIT) and The German Organization for Technical Cooperation (GTZ) in 2007. The study estimated that about 0.38 Mt of e-waste was generated in 2007 and forecasted that it would reach 0.47 Mt by 2011. Thereafter, a comprehensive report on e-waste was developed by the Rajya Sabha Secretariat highlighting the need for serious measures. However, there are no reliable e-waste statistics at the national and state levels. A recent study by Associated Chambers of Commerce & Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) estimated that e-waste is growing at an alarming rate of 30% per annum, with a projection of 5.2 Mt by 2020.

The Global E-waste Monitor 2020 (GEM 2020), by far the most recent comprehensive resource on global e-waste statistics, reports India as the third largest producer of e-waste in absolute numbers, with China and US taking the first two spots.

Top 10 E-waste producers in 2019 (kt)  (Source: GEM 2020)

However, in terms of per capita e-waste generation, India is ranked 132nd, while the UK of Great Britain & Northern Ireland, USA, France, and Japan figure in top 10 for both total and per-capita e-waste generation.

India’s position can be read from a more realistic perspective when compared with other emerging economies i.e, BRICS nations.

E-waste Generation for BRICS nations (Source: GEM 2020) 

Among the BRICS nations, China ranks first in total e-waste generation, followed by India and Brazil, while on a per-capita basis, Russia, Brazil, and China occupy the first three spots. India records the lowest per-capita e-waste generation among BRICS nations. Brazil and Russia differ from other nations as they haven’t enacted e-waste regulations yet.

E-waste generation in 2016 and 2019 for BRICS nations (Source: GEM 2017 & GEM 2020)

Indian response to E-waste and challenges

According to GEM 2020,  most countries in top 10 (both in per capita and absolute numbers), barring Brazil, Indonesia, and Russia, have functioning e-waste legislation/rules/regulation. However, the European Union (EU) has been at the forefront in addressing the issue of e-waste, employing a comprehensive approach that covers various stages of production and consumption. The EU is also credited for bringing in “right to repair” for the first time, to promote reuse and curb e-waste. All these legislative and non-legislative measures are located within the larger framework of Circular Economy.

India has initiated a slew of measures in the e-waste sector, starting from the “E-waste (Management & Handling) Rules, 2011”. This was revised in 2016 and replaced by “E-waste (Management) Rules 2016” and was in turn amended in 2018. The regulation mandates some of the best practices in e-waste management such as Take-back schemes, Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). The 2018 amendment also stipulates collection targets for producers failing which punitive action in the form of fine or imprisonment can be imposed. The Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeiTY) has taken up the task of building public awareness about e-waste in collaboration with other stakeholders. Further, the proposed National Resource Efficiency Policy (NREP) also includes the electronics sector, among others, as a key focus area for implementing an action plan in India’s transition to a Circular Economy.

Despite these measures, several challenges lie ahead:

• Notwithstanding the efforts of the government and civil society organizations, public awareness about e-waste remains low. With electronics getting more affordable and rapid expansion of markets, there is an urgent need for awareness campaigns even in semi-urban and rural areas about e-waste.  

• Indian e-waste sector still remains under the grip of informal recycling posing serious environmental and health risks. Further, the rudimentary techniques used in informal recycling are inefficient and lead to economic loss. However, the informal sector is an important player as it offers a vast pool of skilled workers who can be deployed to mainstream recycling activities. The Government needs to develop mechanisms for mainstreaming informal workers with minimum loss of livelihood.

• E-waste regulation since 2012 has spurred the growth of formal recycling in India. There are more than 300 formal recyclers with a combined processing capacity of about 800 kt of e-waste (GEM 2020). However, owing to the dominance of the informal sector, the formal recyclers fail to procure enough e-waste to remain financially viable. On the other hand, Government authorities have discovered serious violations of e-waste rules by formal recyclers.  The onus is on the Government and civil society organizations to turn the relationship between formal and informal recyclers from competitors to partners in effective e-waste management.

• With a thriving secondary market and low levels of awareness, electronic products change many hands before entering the waste stream. In such conditions, compliance of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) might be burdensome for producers who are traditionally not involved in collecting e-waste. Policy instruments that are based on differential but shared responsibilities could enable each stakeholder to operate from their strengths while also contributing to effective e-waste management.

• Dearth of reliable e-waste statistics at the national and state levels has been a major barrier for regulatory authorities, research communities, civil society organizations, and the private sector. A centralized system, along the lines of GST Network, that accounts for material flows in the electronics value chain, would be a transparent and reliable source of e-waste data.

India is currently the third largest e-waste producer and is set to generate even larger quantities of e-waste in future. A collaborative effort of great magnitude is required from all stakeholders to turn this threat into an opportunity and move towards sustainable ways of production and consumption. One hopes that India will rise to the occasion and set an example to the world.

 

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