Initiatives for E-Waste Management

Advances in electronics, communication, and information technologies, and increased consumers’ affordability and have made Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) indispensable. The waste arising from end-of-life electronic and electric products referred to as WEEE or simply e-waste is one of the fastest-growing waste streams in the world.

As per the Global e-waste monitor, 2020, India ranks third in e-waste generation after China and the USA. India is one of the fastest-growing markets for electronics in the world. The Electronics System Design & Manufacturing (ESDM) Industry Report, 2021 anticipates that the electronics industry in India will grow at a CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) of 16.6%, from the US $215 billion in FY19 to the US $540 billion in FY25. This will further contribute to the ever-increasing volumes of e-waste.

E-waste management is governed by the E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2016. It was published by the Ministry of Environment Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC). The E-Waste (Management) Amendment Rules, came into effect in 2018.

The disposal of end-of-life EEE products has negative externalities in terms of impact on human health and the environment.

Sources:

1. 1. https://ewastemonitor.info/gem-2020/ 
2. 2. https://ewastemonitor.info/gem-2020/
3. 3. https://indianexpress.com/article/india/31-6-rise-in-e-waste-generation-last-year-ashwini-choubey-to-rajya-sabha7424095/ 
4. 4. https://cpcb.nic.in/uploads/Projects/E-Waste/List_of_E-waste_Recycler.pdf

Deployment of indigenous and environmentally safe technologies at various stages for e-waste management will offer a unique opportunity for continuous access to critical materials, reduce carbon footprint, ensure self-reliance in producing various rare metals and fulfill the long-term aspirations for a circular economy.

INITIATIVES

Policy Intervention

1. An initiative on eco-friendly management of e-waste and circular economy has been taken up by the Office of PSA.

2. A dedicated PM-STIAC meeting was organized on ‘End-to-End E-Waste Management and Circular Economy’ Chaired by PSA. All major stakeholders were represented in the meeting along with industry representatives.

Technology transfer support

1. Technology webinars: The office has facilitated Technology webinars as a starting point toward having a collaboration mechanism in place. Several public R&D institutes and S&T clusters participated to showcase their technologies.

2. Development of e-waste catalog on the I-STEM national web portal: This catalog has been created to serve as a common platform for all R&D efforts in the domain of “e-waste management”. It aims to enhance collaboration between several players, while also avoiding duplication of research efforts. The catalog currently has technologies from CMET, NEERI, NML, and others. Read More

3. Technology transfers, incubation, and collaboration: Facilitating engagement of technology developers like BARC, CMET, NML, CIPET, etc. with industry, to ensure that indigenous technologies get due attention of entrepreneurs.

On ground implementation

1. Coordination with the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) and other important stakeholders for the development of the e-waste management eco-park. The eco-park is in the early stages of development.

2. The office is working with the Smart Cities Mission for mainstreaming of the concept of e-waste management in the urban area.