e-Waste Assessment in India

A Quantitative Understanding of Generation, Disposal & Recycling of Electronic Waste in India

16th April 2008 Supervised By: Mrs Iti Sharma Department of Computer Engineering Prepared By: Megha Gupta

the total e-waste in India has been estimated to be

1,46,180 tonnes per year

Source : IRG systems South Asia

WASTE PILING UP
Mumbai at present tops the list Mumbai Delhi Bangalore Chennai Kolkata : : : : : 11, 017 tonnes 9,730 tonnes 4,648 tonnes 4,132 tonnes 4,025 tonnes 3,287 tonnes 2,833 tonnes 2,584 tonnes 1,836 tonnes

Ahmedabad : Hyderabad Pune Surat : : :

ELECTRONIC WASTE
Electronic waste, "e-waste" or "Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment" ("WEEE") is a waste consisting of any broken or unwanted electrical or electronic appliance.

It is a point of concern considering that many components of such equipment are considered toxic and are not biodegradable.

SOURCES OF WEEE
IT & Telecom Equipments Large Household Appliances Small Household Appliances Consumer & Lighting Equipments Electrical & Electronic Tools Toys, Leisure & Sports Equipment Medical Devices Monitoring & Control Instruments

Over 75 million current mobile users expected to increase to

200 million by 2008 end.

an estimated 30,000 computers

become obsolete every year

from the IT industry in Bangalore alone

At present, India has about

16 million computers
which are expected to grow

to 75
by 2010

million computers

Over 2 million old PCs ready for disposal in India

E-WASTE : A SAFETY ISSUE

Discarded electronics contain hazardous materials. If disposed improperly, they pose a potential threat to human health and the environment. May contaminate groundwater E-Waste accounts for 40 percent of the lead and 75 percent of the heavy metals found in landfills.

Background: Why is e-waste a problem?

Rapid Technology Changes

Increased Consumer Electronic Purchases

More eWaste

More Hazardous Materials Landfilled

Increasing Human Health & Environment Risks

E-WASTE : A REAL ENVIRONMENTAL THREAT

Element Lead Harmful Effects Extremely harmful to the human body; Damages both the central and peripheral nervous systems; Can cause seizures, retardation, high blood pressure, damage to the kidneys and liver; Adversely affects child development Long term exposure can be carcinogenic, especially for the lungs. Extreme exposure can lead to a potentially fatal condition known as Acute Beryllium Disease

Beryllium

E-WASTE : A REAL ENVIRONMENTAL THREAT

Element Arsenic Harmful Effects Arsenic is a notoriously potent poison; Causes severe damage to the digestive tract Attacks the central nervous and endocrine systems; harmful to mouth, teeth and gums; poses risk in the neurological development of unborn fetuses Toxic to humans in ways similar to arsenic; fatal in large doses Potentially carcinogenic; Repeated exposure can damage the lungs, kidneys and liver

Mercury

Antimony

Cadmium

LEGISLATION
India The Ministry of Environment and Forests in India is currently drafting WEEE" legislation. The new legislation to hold e-waste producers accountable for their action. E-waste/ components, which are hazardous in nature need to be covered under the purview of
The Hazardous Waste (Management and handling) Rules 2003 The Batteries (Management and Handling) Rules, 2001 The Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000.

Greenpeace International is pushing for more stricter legislation.

How to reduce e-Waste?

Reduce Reuse Recycle Recover

Zero land fill

Profiles: Formal Recyclers

e-waste anagement @ e-Parisara
Recycling plant located in MEPZ, Chennai, but offices located in other parts of India also to provide logistics solution to its suppliers Only into Recycling Source from corporate Have tied up with Canon, HP and planning to tie up with more In future 90% processes are Manual Handles 400 500 MT/ Year Recycling plant located in Navi Mumbai Activities: Recycling Repairing Refurbishing & Upgrading Sale & Lease Charity / Donation Source from Corporate Avoid using Water also, along with the avoidance of Chemicals Recycling plant located in outer skirts of Bangalore Only into Recycling Source from corporate Have tied up with a lot of corporate at Bangalore like IBM, TATA Elxsi, ABB, Philips Has a capacity to recycle 3 MT/ Day But handles only 300 to 300 MT/ Year

 An e-waste management company  State of art recycling facility  German technology  9 locations  Investment over $ 25 million  Eco recycling

ISO 9001:2000 Certified Established in 1994. Profit making since inception Listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange, since 1995

HOW RECYCLERS WORK

Member of International Association of Electronics Recyclers (IAER), USA Co-promoters of e-exchangeindia.com in association with Recycle Net Corporation , U.S.A Tie ups with the OEMs, large corporate, Government Departments, for procuring the materials Tie up with National level logistic service providers for movement of goods based on in house SCM Present network of kabadies (scrap dealers) will be motivated to procure from door to door for the smaller quantities Local Municipal authorities for collection & disposal

RECYCLERS PROCESS
Material Recovery (Step - III)

6
Hazardous material Segregation & Disposal Collection of Electronic Waste

Automated Separation (Step - II)

Manual Dismantling & Sorting (Step - I)

Safe Storage

ACTIVITIES
Recycling Collection Recycling Certification Legal Compliance Disposal of Hazardous Substances

Remarketing Repairing Refurbishing & Upgrading Sale & Lease Charity / Donation

Data Security Integrated Logistic Services

Import of e-Waste in India

Other than Businesses & Households, there is one more Source to E-Waste: IMPORTS
In the developed countries, it is expensive to recycle the discarded electronic items Availability of cheap labor along with the absence of import regulations has made India a favored destination for dumping of e-Waste from developed countries It is, however, illegal to import the e-waste Therefore, electronic products are being imported in a clandestine fashion Most of the imports are done under wrong titles such as Charity, scrap (not specified as electronic scrap), etc.

What experts say about e-waste Imports

Because of this clandestine manner of importing e-waste, it is not easy to estimate the quantities of e-Waste imported into India Based on the secondary sources, it is estimated that around 50,000 Metric Tonnes of e-Waste is being imported to India every year

An Expert view.

CONCLUSION

E-WASTE MANAGEMENT IS A RESPONSIBILITY OF ALL STAKEHOLDERS. EVERYONE SHOULD PLAY A ROLE!

QUESTIONS ?

THANK YOU