Presented by:

SHEEMAN AHMED (S.Y.BMS)

What is e-waste?
E-waste is those waste materials consisting of any broken or unwanted / obsolete electrical or electronic appliances & gadgets. If it is not carried out properly it can dangerous to the human health or to the environment. India currently produces 500,000 tones of e-waste annually and the figure is expected to touch one million tones in 2 !2. "owever# India lacks a proper e-waste disposal system and it is left up to the unorgani$ed sector to dispose of the waste. %he unorgani$ed sector uses uncontrolled burning and disassembly to discard the waste# leading to environmental and health problems uneducated workers are exposed to toxic fumes as they don&t even use protective gear. %he improper disposal also allows toxic substances to travel up the 'ood and (ater chain. (e shred all kinds of electrical and electronic goods using eco friendly methods. (e shred the parts into pieces# segregate the pieces and then send them to smelting companies. )nlike the kabadis# we use no chemicals or flames so our method of recycling has $ero ha$ards. %here is a need to introduce incentives so that people return their electrical and electronic good to the manufacturer when they bought a new piece. %here is a need of involving the youth to solve the problem of e-waste.

How the e-waste is generating?

'rom getting rid of old machines# to selling the metals recovered from them# here is a step-by-step description is given* %he all obsolete electronics goods# mobiles phones dumped or sold to Kabadiwallah +scrap holder, -abadiwallah picks up all useful materials and remaining materials sells to the Local scrap dealer. .ocal scrap dealer separate the materials into categories and sells it to another (High level) scrap dealer. /fter acid-washing or burning# metals like silver# aluminum# copper# iron# steel# brass etc are recovered.

Jewellers buy the all expensive metals out of the recovered metals from the electronics. %hen all remaining solid materials which contain the mostly Plastics (PV !s) are thrown in the Environment.

Only 40% of e-wastes are recycle in India:

(hile an estimated 0 lakh tonnes of e-waste is generated in India# about 0 # tonnes is imported or dumped in the country. 1nly 2 per cent of India3s total e-waste is recycled# and the rest is left in storehouses due to an inefficient collection system. 4urrently e-waste recycling# especially processing# remains concentrated in the informal sector# which due to poor processing technologies and small capacities have failed to significantly control pollution and environmental degradation. %he e-waste assessment study covered over 2 corporate houses and close to 2 households. /ccording to the study# 52 per cent of the organi$ations surveyed did not have any policy on disposal of obsolete I% products. %his situation could assume alarming proportions. %herefore it is time we paid serious attention to the issue and took corrective action to contain this problem. 6anufacturers3 /ssociation for Information %echnology +6/I%, has appealed to the government to adopt an inclusive model by identifying and defining the roles of each stakeholder including vendors# users# recyclers and the regulator for environment-friendly recycling. %he informal recyclers should also be included in this model and an awareness campaign put in place to ensure that the right information on e-waste reaches all stakeholders in a timely manner.

What are the Most Hazardous Wastes?

1 !athode "ay #u$es %!"#s&
47% monitors and %8s contain and average of 2 pounds of lead each. Excessive lead and other toxins pose a problem in landfills because they can leak into. In combustors# the lead winds up on the ash remains# which in turn disposed of in landfills. .ead exposure has been linked with learning disabilities# behavioral problems and at very high levels# sei$ures# coma and even death.

' (atteries:

Lead batteries are this country&s principal source of power for automobiles# trucks# motorcycles# boats# forklifts# golf cats# lawn and garden tractors# and wheelchairs. %hese heavy# rectangular batteries contain sulfuric acid# which can burn skin on contact. "l#aline batteries are standard household batteries. %hey are used in product from walkmans and clocks# to smoke detectors and remote controls $%tton $atteries are most commonly found in watches and hearing aids. 6any button batteries contain mercury of silver oxide# both metal that are toxic to humans when inhaled or ingested. &echargeable $atteries are found in many products including* cell phones# cordless phones# laptops# and remote controlled toys. It contains cadmium# a metal that is toxic to humans when inhaled or ingested. Lithi%m $atteries are mainly used in computer# camcorders# laptop and cameras# when in contact with water and has been notorious for causing serious fires.

) *rinters'

6ost printer cartridges are easily recycled# refilled or re-built. 9ut printer vendors sell the printer cheap# and make their real money selling supplies. %he :right; environmental solution is to sell new cartridges with a postage paid mailer for returning the old one. <ome advanced companies# such as "ewlett-=ackard# have been known to do this especially for laser printers.

4 Old "efrigerators + ,ir !onditioners:

6ostly# old refrigeration e>uipment contains 'reon# a chemical known as a 4hloro 'luoro 4arbon or :4'4.; Each molecule of a 4'4 can destroy over ! # molecules of the earth&s protective o$one coating# leading increased risk of sunburn# cataracts and skin cancer for the entire population of the planet +human & animal,

- *lastic %including *.!&:

?ioxin is released when =84 is burned. %he largest volume of plastics +2@A, used in electronics has been =84. =84 elements are found in cabling and computer housings.

"ecycling in India:
7ecycling can be defined as the assembling# developing promoting or buying of new products# which are prepared from waste materials. %his exercise also reduces litter and the costs of solid waste disposal. In the past# when pots were broken# they are not thrown away. %he broken pots were then crushed into fine clay powder. %hat improved clay was used to make striking and fine-looking new pots. %oday# we use many materials once# and then consider them as waste. 1ur task now is to develop the age-ole art of recycling exercises by our forefathers "ecycling in India is done $oth in the organized and unorganized sectors/ In a narrow alley in (elhi where computers are delivered to be dismantled or processed# children play near with the scrap metals and chine parts. Bearby# men sort thorough parts of printer# key boards and tangles of wires# their hands stained with ink from the printer toners and with other chemicals. %his scene is common among the small-scale :backyard; operations characteristic of the e-waste industry&s unorgani$ed sector. $angalore, the silicon valley of India# produces around )00 tons*+ear of electronic and electrical waste. /ccording to the -arnataka <tate =ollution 4ontrol 9oard 4hairman*

/bout ),000 tons of electrical and electronic waste is stored in and around 9angaloreC 9y ,00-.,00/# the >uantity of e-waste production will rise to 0,500 tons*+ear.

How they "ecycle? 9angalore recyclers are believed to sell used parts to computer assemblers in the grey market and often use child labor for extracting precious metals through crude methods. 9esides gold and silver# e-waste can yield >uantities of platinum# silicon# cadmium# nickel# copper# lead and iron during recycling. 1nce the precious metals are extracted# the rest# mostly plastics# are burnt or dumped near residential areas. %oxic and possibly carcinogenic substances are released into the air# soil and ground water. Expectant and nursing mothers and children are badly affected. ?iscarding old electronic e>uipment in landfills or incineration not only wastes valuable resources but also releases potentially ha$ardous materials into the environment via leachate and toxic air emissions.

,n infor0al sector recycling / In an informal sector recycling is done without a safety measuresD

Especially women and children# in garages and in dingy areas# carry out operationsC In Bew ?elhi alone# around 1,000 persons are involved in the recycling of e-waste compared to <wit$erland where 0, to ,1 persons handle the e-waste of the whole country.

%he Informal sector worker doesn&t bother about the workplace whether it is scrap yard or a residential area. If they get more they will work anywhere. Indiscriminate d%mping and b%rning of e-waste and %nscienti2ic rec+cling results in occupational ha$ards and environment degradation* a soil sample of an open field where e-waste was being burnt in ?elhi

showed that it contained enough merc%r+ and lead to poison it for the next 500 +earsE , for0al sector recycling / 9ut the recycling doesn&t have to be like inform sector in India. Informal sector use rudimentary methods. /t the 3co.&ec+cling Ltd 2acilit+ in 4%mbai# 4omputers are put on a conveyer belt after minimal manual dismantling# shredded by machines and sent through various separators. Experts says if the informal sectors worker- combine with the formal sector with it safe practices and environmentally sound methodologies# it represent an industry with limitless potential of proper recycling.

I01ort of 2-waste in India:

%here are concerns in Indian civil society over reports in the 9ritish media saying that 9ritain is throwing out more than a million tonnes of Fe-wasteF every year. / Guardian report recently# said that# last year# 0 # tonnes of I% and other electronic e>uipment was shipped out illegally# mostly to 4hina# =akistan and India. It said# in one instance# documents on a container waiting to be shipped declared that its contents were innocuous plastic packaging. 9ut when customs officers opened it up they found tonnes of broken computer monitors and other electronic waste collected by a south (ales 4ompany# which was sending it to be dismantled by hand for its lead and other valuable toxic contents. %he illegal shipment of ha$ardous waste was reportedly blocked and returned. (here its import is restricted and cannot be allowed to import without license. %ill date the 6inistry has issued not a single license for imports. %hus# the imports are illegal and could be coming in mislabeled at the time of bill of entry in the port. /ccording to the 9ritish pollution watchdog Environment /gency# e-waste exports are worth hundreds of millions of pounds. .ast year# such waste involved*

00,000 5ld omp%ters, 50,000 6V!s, 70,00,000 &e2rigerators, 4illions o2 discarded 4obile Phones 8 0,)0,000 tonnes o2 other electrical e9%ipment.

/ll sent to the /sian countries like India# 4hina and =akistan. %he waste is being exported in /sian countries by companies who trying to avoid paying increasingly high disposal costs in 9ritain. %he trade is absolutely illegal and against the spirit of 9asel 4onvention. %he e-waste materials are dangerous to Environment and "uman health# if disposed improperly. %he Indian e-waste recycling system# is a combination of several ha$ardous processes# and is not technically and economically e>uipped to handle the in-house generated e-waste. 1ver the years %oxics .ink has released several groundbreaking reports on the status of e-waste# which have revealed that more than H A of electronic waste collected in the recycling units in ?elhi was actually exported or dumped by developed countries such as )</. In India this waste is subIected to primitive and highly polluting recycling operations# which impact the health of workers.

!hallenges of 2-Waste Manage0ent in India:

%he challenges of managing e-waste in India are very different from those in other countries# developed or developing. (hile there can be several shared lessons# the complexity of the e-waste issue in India# given its vast geographical and cultural diversity and economic disparities# makes ewaste management challenges in India >uite uni>ue. / few of these are*

7apidly increasing e-waste volumes# both by domestically generated as well as through imports. Imports are often disguised as second-hand computer donations towards bridging the digital divide or simply as metal scrap. Bo accurate estimates of the >uantity of e-waste generated and recycled. .ow level of awareness amongst manufacturers and consumers of the ha$ards of incorrect e-waste disposal.

(idespread e-waste recycling in the informal sector using rudimentary techni>ues such as acid leaching and open air burning resulting in severe environmental damage E-waste workers have little or no knowledge of toxins in e-waste and are exposed to serious health ha$ards. (orker in Informal sector aren&t capable to take out everything which is valuable. Inefficient recycling processes result in substantial losses of material value J4herry-picking& by recyclers who recover precious metals and improperly dispose of the rest.

2-Waste 3tatistics:
E-waste generation in :ndia is approximately 0# year. # tonnes per

'ormal sector account for only 0A of e-waste and remaining 50A form informal sector which include =4&s# 6obile =hones# "ousehold electronics# Electronics Gadgets etc. %he top states in order of highest contribution to e-waste include 6aharastra# /ndhra =radesh# )ttar =radesh# (est 9engal# ?elhi# -arnataka and 6adhya =radesh. %he city ranking of largest e-waste generators is 6umbai# ?elhi# 9angalore# 4hennai and -olkatta. 6umbai generating !!# India. tonnes of e-waste# which is most in the

/n estimated K # computers become obsolete every year from the I% industry in 9angalore alone. %he reason - an extremely high obsolescence rate of K A per year.

/lmost 0 A of the =43s sold in India are products from the secondary market and are re-assembled on old components. 2 million units of e-waste scrapped each year !KK# =4s are discarded by ).<. homes and businesses each day

2 to 22 million computers and televisions are added to storage each year 5ne h%ndred thirt+ million cell phones are retired each year. %hree categories of e-waste account for almost 5 A of the generation :
1,.0;' Large Ho%sehold appliances 77.<;' :6 e9%ipment 07.-; ' ons%mer 3lectronics

:<ome ,0 to 50 million metric tonnes of e-waste are generated worldwide every year# comprising more than 0A of all municipal solid waste. (hen the millions of computers purchased around the world every year +!LK million in 2 2, become obsolete they leave behind lead# cadmium# mercury and other ha$ardous wastes. In the )< alone# some !2 to 2 million =4s are thrown out every year.

4nits + *olicies to reduce the e-waste:

"sh &ec+clers of 9angalore# started by social activist /. <yed "ussain# offers to pick up any obsolete electronic e>uipment and even pays for it as part of its effort to reduce more ha$ardous methods of recycling electronic waste. (hat the organi$ation does as an alternative is to donate refurbished computers to schools which cannot afford new ones with the agreement they are handed back after their lives end for safe recycling. 6aharashtra&s first authori$ed e-waste unit Eco-7ecycling .td in 6umbai in /ndheri. It was 1ne of the 'our such centers in India. %he =tate >overnment has established a !2 -acre e-waste handing unit# "a$ardous (aste 6anagement area# near 9angalore# with German

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collaboration. It has treatment# storage and disposal facility with a secure landfill where highly ha$ardous material can be stored. 6any Information %echnology maIors such as I96# and =hilips# (ipro has already announced its willingness to offer.

Ha5e any O$solete 2lectronics?

If you have any type of the obsolete electronics computers# 4ell phones# any other electronics# instead of giving it to the local scrap holder Iust logon to the www.ecoreco.com and the company will collect it from your doorstep.

(i$liogra1hy:
I have collected information for this presentation from* <earch engine www.yahoo.com

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Bewspaper Hindustan Times;

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