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November 2011 | Gary Nevison - Head of Legislation and ComplianceThe Tragedy Of E-Waste

• What Is E-Waste?• Illegal E-Waste Exports

• Experience In India• Some Progress?

Images courtesy of the Basel Action Network

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What is e-waste?

- Greenpeace / Retra

• Average UK citizen discards 3.3 tonnes of WEEE in a lifetime

• Up to 93 million items EEE discarded in UK per year

• Global e-waste estimated at 93.5 million tonnes by 2016 ( 41.5 million tonnes in 2011)

• Fastest growing waste stream – 6% annuallySources = EIA, UN, ICER and MarketsandMarkets

Appliance Lifetime in yearsDesktop / laptop 2Mobile phone 2TV 8Refrigerator 6

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Illegal WEEE “Exports”

• Illegal when WEEE is exported as functional EEE but is not• Cannot be used again and only destination is

for disposal as e-waste

• Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal- 178 parties signed up - Becomes law when 68 of the countries party

to the convention in 1995 ratify it (51 currently – excludes US)

• 60 minutes (USA – 2008) & Panorama (UK - 2011) ……YouTube – Electronic Wasteland

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“Backyard Recycling” Process

• Money earned from reclaiming valuable materials– $2 to $5 per day– Copper wires burnt to remove coatings– CRT monitors smashed– Circuit boards dipped into acid baths– Gold, silver, platinum, cadmium, nickel etc

• Leftover useless materials dumped in landfills / rivers or burnt

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Effects of Backyard Recycling

• Burning, acid fires, smashing expose workers and the environment to extremely noxious materials– Lead, cadmium, mercury , selenium etc

• Damage to the brain, nervous system, lungs, and kidneys, can cause cancer and even be fatal

• Toxins spread to soil and groundwater

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Working With Local Experts

• 5 million+ people work in Indian e-waste trade

• Dr Thuppil Venkatesh– Advisor to the National Referral Centre for

Lead Poisoning in India (NRCLPI)

• Problem caused by ‘charitable’ donations– “You are killing the children”– “53% of the children under 12 in Bangalore

have levels of lead in their blood that is causing brain damage”

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Creating Awareness In India

• Premier Farnell worked with Dr. Venkatesh to sponsor awareness projects in Bangalore

• LEADER scheme– Aim to train teachers who educate young

people on the dangers of unsafe recycling– 200 teachers then address 500 students each– Supported by other material

inc. posters and respiratorymasks

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Achievements

• 2008 – Invited to speak at Hazardous Materials Management conference, Bangalore India

• February 2009 - Premier Farnell helped the NRCLPI to fund:- 32 training programs across India

• 2800 teachers attended- Workshop material for 350 teachers- 2000 teachers achieved certified status- 3000 respiratory masks for Bangalore region- 1000 copies of ‘Lead and U’ DVD- Farnell conferences to raise awareness

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What Happened Next?

• Efforts hampered by e-waste links with organised crime – Forced to abandon– Reveals underlying complexity of problem

• ‘Playing God’ with people’s livelihoods

HOWEVER,‒ Better understanding of problems and

solutions‒ Setting up of a Premier Farnell Trust Fund‒ Create a sustained stream of funding‒ Dr Venkatesh also identified opportunities

and contacts to extend efforts to China

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Positive Progress

• WEEE recast– Inspection and monitoring– Distinguish between EEE and WEEE– Testing and documentation required

• E-stewards– Global independent certification program that

all stakeholders can rely on– Identify responsible recyclers

• Problem remains of inadequate waste treatment standards – this should be a focus

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Future Hopes

• The ICT industry designs products free from hazardous chemicals, that are energy efficient, easier to recycle and durable

• Organisations like the Interpol Global e-waste Crime Group, currently working across 42 countries, can share intelligence and take forward a strategy to control illegal e-waste

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Information

www.element14.com/legislation