E-waste: India’s next big concern

Dhirendra Newar

(The writer can be reached at dhiren.newar@gmail.com)

Look around your living room or the office cabin. What do you see? Some piles of electronic devices, wires, cords and other e-accessories. If you look closely you find many of them non-functioning or non-usable. That’s where the e-waste comes from, from yours and my pockets. However, have we ever given much thought on it? Perhaps not. This is such a crucial emerging issue yet not a serious awareness is done about it, many of the people might not even have heard about it.

E-waste or electronic wastes is one among the growing environmental issues having the energy of giving a deep-rooted impact on the environment. One UN report reads, “The world produces as much as 50 million tonnes of electronic and electrical waste (e-waste) a year, weighing more than all of the commercial airliners ever made. Only 20% of this is formally recycled. The e-waste produced annually is worth over $62.5 billion, more than the GDP of most countries. There is 100 times more gold in a tonne of e-waste than in a tonne of gold ore.”A study conducted The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) and KPMG in 2016 ranked India among one of the top five countries in e-waste generation, with an estimated 1.85 million tonnes generated annually. This accounts for roughly 4 per cent of e-waste generated annually. A Delhi-based environmental NGO namely Toxic Link conducted a survey in 2015 and found that Assam produces nearly 14,000 tonnes of e-waste every year. According to the survey, Assam is the sixth-largest e-waste producing state in India. Mumbai tops the list while Delhi and Bengaluru rank second and third, with 98,000 and 92,000 tonnes respectively.

But before discussing any further, we need to learn what the term ‘e-waste’ means. The Central government has, in the exercise of its powers provided under the Environment Protection Act 1986, drafted the E-waste (Management) Rules, 2016. Rule 3(r) defines ‘e-waste’ as “electrical and electronic equipment, whole or in part discarded as waste by the consumer or bulk consumer as well as rejects from manufacturing, refurbishment and repair process”. Further ‘electrical and electronic equipment (EEE)’ is explained under rule 3(p) as “equipment which is dependent on electric currents or electromagnetic fields in order to become functional”. Under Schedule I of the said rule, there are several categories of EEE are provided such as Laptop Computer, Notebook Computer, Notepad Computers, Printers including cartridges, Electrical and electronic typewriters, Telephones, Pay telephones, Cordless telephones, Cellular telephones, Television sets, Refrigerator Washing Machines etc. among others. JS Pigments Pvt. Ltd., an initiative of India’s first E-Waste Management & Handling Company in Eastern India; which provides comprehensive E-waste Management & Handling services on a PAN Indian basis, cites in its website, “E-waste comprises wastes generated from used electronic and electrical devices and household appliances which are not fit for their original intended use and are destined for recovery, recycling or disposal. Such wastes encompass a wide range of electrical electronic devices such as computers, handheld cellular phones, personal stereos, including large household appliances such as refrigerators, air conditioners etc. E-wastes contain over 1,000 different substances many of which are toxic and potentially hazardous for environment and human health, These Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipments [WEEE] are termed as e-waste. The e-waste is emerging as a major crisis in developing and developed countries”. It also mentions that E-waste is known to contain certain toxic constituents in their components such as lead, cadmium, mercury, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), etched chemicals, brominated flame retardants etc., which are required to be handled safely.

Among others, the E-waste (Management) Rules, 2016 has devised several layers of responsibilities of different categories of persons including manufacturer, producer, consumer, dealer, collection centres etc, among others. The responsibility of the manufacturer is included under rule 4 which includes to collect e-waste generated during the manufacture of any electrical and electronic equipment and channelize it for recycling or disposal; apply for an authorization, in accordance with the procedure prescribed, from the concerned State Pollution Control Board; ensure that no damage is caused to the environment during storage and transportation of e-waste; maintain records of the e-waste generated, handled and disposed and make such records available for scrutiny by the concerned State Pollution Control Board etc. The responsibility of the consumer or bulk consumers are also set out in the rule which is included in rule 9 which ensures that e-waste generated by them is channelized through collection centre or dealer of authorized producer or dismantler or recycler or through the designated take-back service provider of the producer to authorized dismantler or recycler; bulk consumers of electrical and electronic equipment listed in Schedule I shall maintain records of e-waste generated by them and make such records available for scrutiny by the concerned State Pollution Control Board; consumers or bulk consumers of electrical and electronic equipment listed in Schedule I shall ensure that such end-of-life electrical and electronic equipment are not admixed with e-waste containing radioactive material as covered under the provisions of the Atomic Energy Act, 1962.

The responsibility and duty of the Urban local body is also categorically provided under the rule which includes ensuring that e-waste if found to be mixed with Municipal Solid Waste, is properly segregated, collected and is channelized to authorized dismantler or recycler and also to ensure that e-waste pertaining to orphan products i.e. non-branded or assembled electrical and electronic equipment or those produced by a company which has closed its operations, is collected and channelized to authorized dismantler or recycler. Under rule 21 Liability of manufacturer, producer, importer, transporter, refurbisher, dismantler and recycler are included which reads as ”(1) The manufacturer, producer, importer, transporter, refurbisher, dismantler and recycler shall be liable for all damage caused to the environment or third party due to improper handling and management of the e-waste; (2) The manufacturer, producer, importer, transporter, refurbisher, dismantler and recycler shall be liable to pay financial penalties as levied for any violation of the provisions under these rules by the State Pollution Control Board with the prior approval of the Central Pollution Control Board”.

It is to admit that the above law is a progressive one and is properly drafted to tackle such an emerging problem. However, the implementation is always a question mark. It is hard to know that there are not enough recycling plants being set up in India till date. The manufacturers keep periodical updates through software and other forms, which make the old devices obsolete and the consumers are left with no option but to go for a new electronic device. This indirectly pushes the consumer to pile up the e-wastes in their households. Also, the municipal bodies which are given the responsibility of segregating the e-waste from other solid wastes are hardly seen doing it, which can be corroborated by the fact that the municipal dump yards are filled with several electronic wastes along with other solid materials and wastes.

However, the cruellest reality is that in spite of the severe nature of impacts, not many of the people know about them. And this is because there is a serious lack of awareness programmes and lack of understanding of the nature of harmfulness that these wastes can generate. People treat these e-wastes as regular household solid wastes and do not even bother to segregate them. Lack of awareness of people coupled with non-performance of the responsibility by different stakeholders really combines this concern.

Under such a scenario, some strict measures must be taken pan India basis. The central and state pollution control boards should pressurize the manufacturing companies to produce and manufacture less harmful products to the environment. These manufacturing companies need to be made to take back their e-wastes. The durability of electronic products should be improved. The solution lies with every household.

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