Course Work: EVS 205A

Assignment No.2

E-Waste Management

What is E-waste?

When electronic equipment is no longer appropriate for its intended use or

has beyond its expiration date, it produces electronic trash, often known as

e-waste. The production of newer electronic equipment and the quick

advancement of technology makes it simple to swap outdated models for

more modern ones. In India, e-waste has increased exponentially. People

frequently upgrade to more modern models and popular technology, and

product lifespans are getting shorter with time. The toxic chemicals that

e-waste naturally releases from the metals inside when buried pose a

severe risk to people, animals, and the environment. Even a small quantity

of highly toxic substances like mercury, lead, beryllium, and cadmium

poses a significant environmental threat to society. Plastics, metals,

cathode ray tubes (CRTs), printed wires, circuit boards, and other materials

are frequently found in e-waste. Once e-waste is handled scientifically,

valuable metals like copper, silver, gold, and platinum can be recycled.
List of common E-waste items: Computers, cell phones, mainframes,

servers, monitors, printers, scanners, hard drives, compact discs (CDs),

copiers, calculators, battery cells, cellular phones, fax machines,

transceivers, TVs, medical apparatus, iPods, refrigerators, washing

machines, Microwaves, heaters, air conditioners, etc.

Challenges for E-waste Management in India

To gather, classify, repair, refurbish, and disassemble outdated electrical

and electronic equipment, India's informal e-waste recycling industry

employs thousands of households in urban areas. Though, the situation is

different in advanced countries. In India, there is no concept of consumers

willingly donating E-waste products at authorized e-waste recycling

centers. Additionally, the idea of consumers paying for the disposal of the

electronic garbage they produce does not exist.

Critical challenges arise in India due to heavy reliance on an informal

sector for e-waste:

● The attempt to enforce financial penalties for non-compliance or

violation of the standards for handling and processing e-waste is

useless.
 ● There is less general public awareness of market prices and health

safety concerns associated with e-waste recycling because low-paid

people who perform this activity need more training.

● Yearly, there is a massive increase in the volume of e-waste

accumulated, and hence for recovering and recycling, there is a

requirement for more investment in large-scale industrial

infrastructure.

Poor Infrastructure for the Recycling of E-waste

India has minimal infrastructure that can handle e-waste on a massive

basis. Only 1/5th of the annual total amount of e-waste generated is

processed in government-approved e-waste recycling centers. The

co-funded grant scheme the Indian government gives covers 25% to 50%

of the project expenditures for establishing e-waste management facilities

and increasing the capacity of e-waste businesses. The adoption of this

plan, though, may be far higher. Additionally, there is a need for new

e-waste recycling facilities that have received formal approval. The bulk of

informal e-waste collectors in India now operate at far lower capacity due to

poor supply chains system. However, the formal recycling industry in India

can only manage e-waste through mechanical dismantling and human

sorting.
Lack of Awareness and Financial Incentives

In India, recycling rates are low, and there needs to be more public

awareness of e-waste hazards. Most consumers need to learn more about

the dangers associated with e-waste components and the consequences of

inappropriate disposal. They need to know that urban municipal or state

governments in India handle e-waste management. When buying new

electrical or electronic devices from small-scale retail stores, most people

used to sell their old electronics in exchange for some discount.

Consumers need more financial incentives to dispose of their e-waste

safely because they need more market information on prices for e-waste

and different e-waste components.

Less Information on E-waste Generation Rates

It is recognized that there aren't any e-waste inventories, and each

state-wise, State Pollution Control Board, is responsible for this.

To measure the amount of e-waste, sales information on electronic

products is a crucial input. In addition to being produced domestically,

e-waste is frequently illegally imported from developed countries. The

nature and volume of e-waste imported into the country must be better

understood. Precise waste generation knowledge and composition are

required for processing e-waste, and a robust system is necessary for the

collection and transportation.

Other challenges are as follows:

● Mismanagement in the market for end-of-life Products

● Environmentally Unsustainable Informal Sector Practices

● Inadequate Regulatory Design and Enforcement

Improvement of E-waste Management in India

E-waste management can be improved in India in a number of ways.

However, there are five crucial elements that can be combined to improve

India's e-waste management.

● Providing Market Information about E-waste Prices

● Incentivizing Formal E-waste Recycling

● Training and Upskilling Informal Sector Players

● Deploying Readily Available and Mature Recycling Technologies

● Developing Innovative Methods & Technologies for Processing New

Forms of E-waste