E-Waste Module-1

Module-1: Introduction

Preamble:

In the era of rapid technological advancement, electronic devices have become an integral part of
daily life, enhancing communication, productivity, and convenience. However, this digital
evolution has given rise to a pressing environmental concern — electronic waste, or e-waste. E-
waste comprises discarded electrical or electronic devices, many of which contain hazardous
substances that pose serious risks to human health and the environment if not managed
responsibly.

The growing volume of e-waste, driven by consumerism, technological obsolescence, and lack
of awareness, demands urgent attention from individuals, institutions, and governments alike.
Proper management of e-waste through reduction, reuse, recycling, and safe disposal is essential
to conserve natural resources, prevent pollution, and promote sustainable development.

This document aims to raise awareness, promote responsible e-waste handling practices, and
advocate for policies and innovations that support a circular economy. By addressing the
challenges of e-waste, we commit to a cleaner, safer, and more sustainable future for generations
to come.

What is e-waste :

E-products become e-waste when discarded after their useful life

Possibility of repair or refurbishment before reaching end-of-life (EoL)

(Refurbishing is a process to make devices functional in a way that they work according to new
standards vis-à-vis obsolete technology. For example, old parts are replaced by new ones, new
software could be installed)

Lifespan can be extended through repair and reuse

• Accepted Definitions and Terminology

• E-waste: Discarded e-products with no intention of reuse (Miliute-Plepiene and Youhanan

2019)

• Anything with a plug, cord, or battery reached at end-of-life (PACE and WEF 2019)

• Includes whole products or parts, rejects from manufacturing, refurbishment, and

repair (Bhardwaj 2016) E-waste management- 21EC755

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• Terms: WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) and e-scrap Life cycle of an e-
product

Sources and generation of E-waste:

1. Sources of E-Waste

E-waste is generated from a wide variety of sources, primarily due to the use and eventual
disposal of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE). The main sources include:

a) Households

 Discarded mobile phones, televisions, laptops, desktops, printers, refrigerators,

microwave ovens, etc.
 Often disposed of due to upgrading to newer models or due to malfunction.

b) Commercial Establishments

 Offices, retail stores, and institutions discard large amounts of IT equipment

like computers, servers, scanners, copiers, and telecommunication devices.
 Regular equipment upgrades contribute significantly to e-waste.

c) Industries

 Industrial machinery, automation systems, and control panels that are outdated or broken.
 Industrial waste also includes batteries, sensors, and electronic tools.

d) Government and Defense Sector

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 Obsolete or surplus electronic equipment used in administrative operations,

surveillance, communication, etc.

e) Educational Institutions

 E-waste from outdated laboratory instruments, projectors, computers, and audio-visual

devices.

f) Healthcare Sector

 Electronic medical devices such as diagnostic equipment, monitors, imaging

machines (X-ray, MRI), and lab analyzers.

g) Import of Used Electronics

 Developing countries often import used electronics (legal or illegal) which, when
found unusable, are discarded, adding to e-waste.

2. Generation of E-Waste

E-waste generation refers to the process and volume of electronic waste produced over time,
often measured in metric tons per year.

Factors Contributing to E-Waste Generation:

 Short product lifecycles: Devices become obsolete faster due to rapid

technological advancement.
 Consumerism: People often discard working electronics for newer versions.
 Lack of repair culture: High cost or unavailability of repairs pushes people to
replace rather than fix devices.
 Improper disposal habits: Many devices are thrown away with general waste.

Global and India-Specific Data (as of recent reports):

 According to the Global E-Waste Monitor 2024 (by the UN):

o The world generated approximately 62 million metric tons of e-waste in 2022.
o Only 22% of it was formally recycled.
 India is the third-largest generator of e-waste (after China and the USA), generating
over 1.2 million metric tons annually, primarily from:
o Personal and household use (~40%)
o Industrial and commercial sectors (~60%)

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Growth of Electrical and Electronics Industry in India:

Importance of electrical and electronic equipment in a nation's development, and e- waste as toxic
companion of digital era

• A country’s development or any modern society is often epitomized(incorporate) with

the communication revolution of 1980s and the digital revolution since the 1990s.

• Communication Revolution of the 1980s

• Transformations in Society

o Changes the in the way we organize our lives, economies, and industries and
institutions.
o The revolution is observed in form of Enhanced development, comfort,
and technological advancement
o Increased product sales

Digital Revolution Since the 1990s

• The digital technology facilitates

o Increased productivity and development

o Transformation in information, communication, and transportation
o Improvements in energy supply, health, and security systems

• This technology is proliferated with different electrical and electronics equipment (EEE) or e-
products, such as

o PCs, Internet, Satellite TV

o Standardized containers, fiber-optic cables
o Electronic barcodes, global supply chains (making human lives more convenient
and work more efficient)

• A broad range of goods is classified as EEE, which include large and small household
appliances (consumer appliances)

• such as refrigerator, washing machine, air conditioner, microwave oven, etc

• information technology (IT) equipment including computers, computer games and

peripherals cellular telephones and other telecommunication equipment;

• portable electronic devices such as, video and audio equipment and their peripherals; and
electrical tools.

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Global Context of e-waste Management

• Overview of E-Waste Management Thinking

• Focus on environmental damage and risks to human, workers and communities

• Past policy recommendations have focused overwhelmingly on the introduction of

environmental legislation and regulation .

• Transition in E-Waste Management Thinking

• Increasing role of various stakeholders: enterprises, workers, and governments cooperatives

and other social and solidarity organizations, as well as ministries of labour or employment,
and labour market policies all have a key role to play in advancing decent work in the
management of e-waste

• Early focus on safe environment , human health through legislation and EPR (extended
producer responsibility) strategies

• Recent yrs thinking has shifted to include consumer roles(consumer is the purchaser of
electronics as well as the generator of e-waste) and

• digital era impacts (e-products are epitome of development, efficiency, and comfort and
transforming entire production and market system of various products as well as activities in
various sectors, such as, education, healthcare, entertainment and so on. Therefore, consumption
of electronic gadgets is likely to increase multiple folds, and in turn increase in e-waste
generation)

• Increased e-waste generation due to shorter product lifecycles and fewer repair options.

• thus ,introducing resource recovery, REs and CE link with recycling/treating e-waste.
Spreading awareness among users of e-products, user roles in minimising e- waste, and
contribution to tax regime/fees for recycling also have become the agenda of e-waste
management

Components of E-Waste Management Thinking

• Governance(control) of e-waste includes

• Increasing e-waste collection and recycling

• Harmonizing global statistics and expanding legal frameworks

• Urban mining(recovery from building) and economic potential through resource recovery

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• Protecting worker health and addressing environmental concerns.

Indian Scenario on e-waste management:

• India collected and recycled 30 kt (0.030 Mt) in 2019 , which is less than 0.036 Mt of its e-
waste in 2016–2017

• E-Waste Management in India

• . This reveals that the e-waste generation in India is almost 60% higher in three years, as
against its recycling capacity.

• Informal sector handling e-waste -including collection, transportation, dismantling, recycling,

and selling of secondary/recovered materials in the market.

• Inefficient technologies and environmental pollution-E-waste in India is majorly processed

using inefficient technologies, inadequate infrastructures, and improper and unhealthy eco-
system • Regulatory challenges and non-compliance

• (Despite being highly effective in collecting WEEE, its recycling techniques yield low
extraction rates and result in large scale environmental pollution, which negatively affects the
physical wellbeing of thousands of people (GIZ 2017: 4). In 2017, over 200 manufacturers of
electronic goods, including some e-giants, were served notices by the Central Pollution Control
Board (CPCB) for not complying with e-waste procurement norms (Henam 2018)

Historical, domestic e-waste in India: generation and composition

• Historical Data:

 E-waste generation trends (2005-2019)

 Major sources of e-waste

• Future Projections:

 Expected rise in e-waste by 2020 and beyond

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Essentials of e-waste cohesive management thinking in India

• India has largely focused on a regulatory framework, employing EPR as management

and enforcement strategy for various aspects of e-waste management along with
increasing thrust on RE and CE.

• Under the existing legal framework, i.e. the E-waste Management Rules, 2016
(henceforth ‘Rules, 2016’) and E-waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2018
(henceforth ‘Amended Rules, 2018’), effective implementation of EPR occupies centre
stage.

• The producers or the producer responsibility organisation (PRO) is expected to

establish collection channel, segregation, safe transportation and ensure recycling of e-
waste

• Strategic Approaches for E-Waste Management in India

• Integration of Make in India, Digital India, Clean India (Swachh Bharat)

• Material Flow Analysis (MFA) for cohesive management

• The MFA for e-waste management works as a tool for comprehensive understanding
on why, how, where, and what of e- waste (the flow of matter – compounds, chemical
elements, materials, or commodities) at different levels / with a certain categorisation
(e.g. national-level assessment, regional-level assessment, product-level assessment,
element-level assessment). The MFA helps in what supports a material balancing,
conservation flow that brings in multiple axes – e-waste generation estimation, material
flow and stock estimation, potential material recovery, socio-technical structure of WEEE
management, economic sustainability of e-waste management system, product
substitution effects due to technology transition, product and element characterisation,
etc.

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E-WASTE:

E-waste Definition:

The definition of e-waste as per the WEEE Directive(under EU Legislation)

• Defined by Directive 75/442/EEC

• E-waste includes all components, subassemblies, and consumables of discarded

electronic equipment

• Defined by Directive 2002/96/EC (WEEE)

• ‘EEE’ means equipment which is dependent on electrical currents or electromagnetic

fields in order to work properly and equipment for the generation, transfer and
measurement of such current and fields falling under this directive and designed for use
with a voltage rating not exceeding 1,000 volts for alternating current and 1,500 volts for
direct current.

• (Equipment dependent on electrical currents or electromagnetic fields)

Basel Convention Definition(Definition under International Agreement)

• Covers discarded materials with hazardous characteristics

• Definition of waste includes all components , subassemblies and consumables which are
part of the product at the time of discarding

• It further clarifies that ‘national provisions concerning the definition of waste may
differ, and the same material that is regarded as waste in one country may be non- waste
in another country.(National variations in the definition of waste)

Classification of e-waste:

E-waste (Electronic Waste), also known as Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment
(WEEE), is broadly classified based on the type of equipment, function, and
composition. The following are the most accepted categories:

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1. Based on Equipment Type (As per CPCB and E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2022 - India)

Category Examples
I. Information & Communication Computers, laptops, printers, mobile phones, tablets,
Equipment networking devices
II. Consumer Electricals & Televisions, radios, speakers, home theaters, music
Electronics systems
Refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners,
III. Large Household Appliances
dishwashers
Mixers, toasters, electric kettles, hair dryers, irons,
IV. Small Household Appliances
microwave ovens
V. Lighting Equipment CFLs, LED lamps, fluorescent tubes
Drills, sewing machines, saws, lawnmowers, welding
VI. Electrical & Electronic Tools
equipment
VII. Toys, Leisure & Sports
Video games, remote-controlled cars, fitness machines
Equipment
Thermometers, blood pressure monitors, dialysis
VIII. Medical Devices
machines (non-infectious)
IX. Monitoring & Control
Smoke detectors, thermostats, security systems
Instruments
X. Automatic Dispensers ATMs, vending machines, ticket dispensers

2. Based on Material Composition

Type Examples / Contents

Ferrous & Non-Ferrous
Copper, aluminum, iron, tin (wires, circuit boards, casings)
Metals
Plastics ABS, PVC (outer bodies, insulation, connectors)
Glass CRTs in old TVs/monitors, bulbs, screens
Lead, mercury, cadmium, chromium, flame retardants (in PCBs,
Hazardous Substances
batteries)
Precious Metals Gold, silver, palladium (found in PCBs, connectors)

3. Based on Recoverability

Type Description
Reusable Devices that can be refurbished or resold
Non-Reusable (Scrap) Devices damaged beyond repair – often recycled or disposed
Hazardous E-Waste Contains toxic chemicals harmful to health/environment

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Non-Hazardous E-Waste Minimal health/environment risk – usually plastic and metals

4. Based on Functionality / Use

Category Description
IT & Telecom Equipment Devices used for communication, data processing, internet use
Consumer Durables Personal entertainment and lifestyle electronics
Industrial Electronics Equipment used in manufacturing, energy, defense, etc.
Medical Electronics Healthcare and diagnostic devices (non-infectious only)
Others Research equipment, laboratory instruments, solar panels, etc.

Characterization of e-waste
• E-Waste Differences from Other Waste Types (solid, liquid, bio-medical, and construction
waste)

• [Link] hazardous substances (toxic waste stream)

o Potential for environmental contamination(soil and water) and health risks

o improper management of e-waste contributes to global warming.

• 2. Complexity in composition: materials used in e-products can be classified into four main
groups

o metals, rare earth elements , plastics and other petroleum-based materials, and
minerals and non-metallic materials (metals, plastics, rare earth elements,
minerals)
S. No. Characteristic Description
1 Hazardous Nature Contains toxic substances such as lead, mercury, cadmiu

chromium that can harm human health and the environm

2 Valuable Materials Contains precious and recyclable metals like gold, silver

aluminum, and palladium.

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3 Complex Composition Consists of a mixture of metals, plastics, glass, ceramics

electronic components.

4 Non-Biodegradable Most electronic components do not decompose naturally

and remain in the environment for a long time.

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