While e-waste laws have come into effect from May 1, questions remain on their implementation.

[Maya Mahajan]

While e-waste laws have come into effect from May 1, questions remain
on their implementation.


E-waste may not be as glamorous a problem as climate change but it is
a prevalent problem nonetheless. In May this year, India joined other
countries in US and Europe and laid down e-waste laws, which go into
effect from this year. Increasing incidents of malpractice involving
electronic dumping in the absence of regulation had triggered the need
for e-waste rules, of which an initial draft was made in 2010.
According to a Centre for Science and Environment report, India
generates 350,000 tonnes of e-waste every year and imports another
50,000 tonnes. This prompted the Ministry of Environment and Forests
(MoEF) to come out with new e-waste rules. The e-waste rules lay down
the responsibilities for various stakeholders, from producers to
collection centres, consumers, recyclers, refurbishers as well as
dismantlers for cradle-to-grave management of waste. The 2011 rules
score over the earlier draft version of 2010 in the addition of a
clause which holds producers responsible for their products.

Numbers and more
According to MAIT's recent estimates, sales of personal computers
including desktops, notebooks and netbooks were expected to cross 12.6
million units during 2011-12 and TRAI has estimated that India had
851.7 million mobile phones. Additionally there are millions of other
electronic items that are discarded every year. For India, the problem
is an important one that needs immediate addressing. Under the new
norms, producers would now be held accountable for the entire
lifecycle of their products and would also have to take initiatives to
introduce changes in product design and technology for environmental
friendly treatment and disposal of the goods that they produce. “This
goes beyond manufacturing and puts the onus on a producer to take
ownership - from producing to managing its end-of-life in an
environment-friendly manner,” said Ms. Priti Mahesh, Project Manager,
Toxics Link, India.

Areas of concern
While this is a step in the right direction, it's not going to solve
India's e-waste problem immediately. “It is in line with global
standards, although there is room for improvement,” said Mr. Abhishek
Pratap, Senior Climate Campaigner, Greenpeace India. It is not only
the environmentalists who are scratching their heads over the rules
but even e-waste recyclers. As per the rules, the onus is on the state
to issue licenses instead of on the centre. This is causing confusion
as a number of recyclers have their recycling units in different parts
of India and will have to go through the bureaucracy to get new
licenses. “The law does not specify the amount of e-waste to be
collected. As a manufacturer, I can just put up a toll-free number and
abide by the law,” said Mr Rohan Gupta, COO, Attero Recycling. “For
example, a company should collect at least 10 per cent of their
products sold by 2012-13, similarly 20 per cent by 2014 and so on,”
opined Mr Gupta.

The rules simply talk about financing and organising a system for the
environmentally sound management of e-waste without any mechanism to
check how this system would be put into practice. The kind of penalty
that might be imposed if EPR is not strictly followed by companies
does not find a mention in the rules. Analysts were of the view that
they had proposed this kind of idea to the government in line with EU
laws but they had not considered it. “These kinds of targets can also
be used to monitor whether the legislation is being implemented
effectively,” said Mr Pratap.

Under the radar
Another significant issue is with regard to the management and
disposal of products present in the market prior to the enforcement of
rules. There are non-branded or assembled products from the gray
market that are cheaper, used on a large scale and comprise a large
proportion of the waste stream. The rules have designated Urban Local
Bodies (ULBs) with the responsibility to collect and channel the
orphan products to the authorized collection centres, dismantlers or
recyclers and to take care of such waste. But a policy at the
manufacturing level is also needed, which does not allow non-existent
brands to do business. However, the regulatory bodies of a large
number of states/union territories lack capacity and are burdened with
other responsibilities. The urban local bodies or municipalities
suffer from a lack of manpower, expertise and resources. “The
government should look at enhancing its existing capacity if it is
serious about implementing these rules,” said Ms. Mahesh. An email
sent to the Karnataka State Pollution Board did not elicit any
response. Also, India is a large country and to get a license within
every state can be time consuming and riddled with bureaucratic
procedures, said Mr Jeevesh Kumar, Founder, Greenscape Eco Management.

Corporate structures
Targets have had an effect on how companies organise their take-back
policy. Dell, for instance, has diverted over 68 million kg (150
million lbs.) of end-of-life electronics globally from landfills in
fiscal 2011, a 16 per cent increase over fiscal 2010. Corporates like
Dell, Lenovo, Nokia and others have take-back programmes but without
financial incentives and enough collection centres, it seems to be a
token gesture. Emails sent to corporate companies like Dell, Lenovo
and Acer about their take-back programmes elicited no response. Mr
Narayan PS, VP and Head-Sustainability, Wipro said that the company is
extending its sustainability programme to its supply chain, involved
in supplying components for its products and plans to double its
collections centres from 17 to 34 by end of this year. According to
Wipro officials, the company collects 260 tonnes of e-waste from its
collection centres. Similarly, Nokia started its take-back and
recycling activities in 2008 and has been running 1400 recycling
points across its outlets. “In 2011, we collected 60 tonnes of phones
and accessories through our take-back programme,” said a Nokia India
spokesperson. By 2020, India's e-waste from old computers will jump
500 per cent when compared to 2007, according to an UN report. The
e-waste journey has just begun.