A

Project Report

On

"E-Waste Disposal”

Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements

For the Award Degree of

BACHELOR OF TECHNOLOGY

IN

CIVIL ENGINEERING

Submitted By:

1. MANISH KUMAR SAINI (15EMCCE725) 4. KIRODI MEENA (15EMCEE721)

2. MAHENDRA KUMAR MEENA (15EMCCE724) 5. LOKESH MEENA (15EMC CE723)

3. MANOHAR LAL PRAJAPATI(15EMCCE727)

Under the Guidance of

MR. PRAVEEN RAJANI

(Lecturer of Civil Department)

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

MODERN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY & RESEARCH CENTRE, ALWAR

 (I)

ABSTRACT

This project is based on the study of E-WASTE DISPOSAL. An insight view of the project
will encompass – what it is all about, what it aims to achieve, what is its purpose and scope, the
various methods used for collecting data and their sources, including literature survey done, further
specifying the limitations of our study and in the last, drawing inferences from the learning so far.

E-waste is one of the emerging problems in developed and developing countries worldwide. It
comprises of a multitude of components with valuable materials, some containing toxic
substances that can have an adverse impact on human health and the environment. Previous
studies show that India has generated 0.4 million tons of e-waste in 2010 which may increase to
0.5 to 0.6 million tons by 2013–2014. Coupled with lack of appropriate infrastructural facilities
and procedures for its disposal and recycling have posed significant importance for e-waste
management in India. In general, e-waste is generated through recycling of e-waste and also
from dumping of these wastes from other countries

(II)
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Words are indeed inadequate to convey my deep sense of gratitude to all those who have
helped me in completing this project to the best of my ability. Being a part of this project has
certainly been a unique and a very productive experience for our group.

Amongst the wide panorama of people who provided me the inspiration, guidance and
encouragement, I take this opportunity to thank those who gave me indebted assistance and
constant encouragement for completing this project.

I would like to thank MR. PRAVEEN RAJANI (Lecturer of Civil Department) for
her continuous help in completion of this project. He was available for guiding the project. He was
actively involved throughout the project and was also kind enough to tell me the strengths and
weaknesses and how I could improve myself to face the corporate world. Without his support the
completion of this project would be impossible.

(III)

List of figures:
Fig. 2.1 Block diagram of sources of e-waste…………………………………...page 5

Fig. 3.1 Growth of e-waste in India …………………………………………….page 10

Fig. 4.1 Generations of e-waste in India …………………………………….......page 11

Fig. 5.1 city-wise generation of e-waste ………………………………………....page 11

Fig. 6.1 composition of e-waste ………………………………………………….page 12

Additional figure:-

1. Treated and generated e waste in India…………………………page52

2. Contribution of e waste…………………………………………page 53 3.
Hazardous waste generated in Rajasthan……………………….page 54

(IV)

List of tables:

Table 1: Different categories of E-Waste………………………………..page 55

Table 2: The toxic components present in e-waste………………………page 56

Table 3: Hazardous effects due to E-Waste Treatment…………………..page 57

(V)

INDEX

Topics Page No.

1. Introduction.........................................................................................................................1-2

2. Review.................................................................................................................................3-4

3. Report on Project Investigation

3.1 Source of E-waste… ....................................................................................................5-6

3.2 Categories of E-waste…...............................................................................................7-8

3.3 Generation of E-waste & hazards …...........................................................................9-12

3.4 Problem in urban Area................................................................................................13-14

3.5 List of waste types ……..........................................................................................15-18

3.6 E-waste managment....................................................................................................19-21

3.7 Country-wise regulation and managment...................................................................22-23

3.8 Biomedical waste dispose ..........................................................................................24-37

3.9 Environmental impact...............................................................................................38- 51.

4. Result & Discussion..........................................................................................................58-59

5. Summary & Conclusion....................................................................................................60-64

6. Future scope......................................................................................................................65-68

7. Reference............................................................................................................................69-70
CHAPTER-1

INTRODUCTION

E-waste or electronic waste is created when an electronic product is discarded after the end of its
useful life. The rapid expansion of technology means that a very large amount of e-waste is created
every minute.

Electronic waste or e-waste may be defined as discarded computers, office electronic equipment,
entertainment device electronics, mobile phones, television sets, and refrigerators. This includes
used electronics which are destined for reuse, resale, salvage, recycling, or disposal as well as
reusable (working and repairable electronics) and secondary scraps (copper, steel, plastic, etc.).
The term "waste" is reserved for residue or material which is dumped by the buyer rather than
recycled, including residue from reuse and recycling operations, because loads of surplus
electronics are frequently commingled packaging, unused bandages, infusion kits, etc.), as well
research laboratory waste containing biomolecules or organisms that are restricted from
environmental release.

Medical waste management in India

The Bio-medical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 1998 and further amendments were
passed for the regulation of bio-medical waste management. On 28 THz Mar 2016 Biomedical
Waste Management Rules 2016 were also notified by Central Govt. Each state's Pollution Control
Board or Pollution control Committee will be responsible for implementing the new legislation.

1
Environmental impact
The processes of dismantling and disposing of electronic waste in developing countries led to a
number of environmental impacts as illustrated in the graphic. Liquid and atmospheric releases
end up in bodies of water, groundwater, soil, and air and therefore in land and sea animals – both
domesticated and wild, in crops eaten by both animals and human, and in drinking water.

One study of environmental effects in Guy, China found the following:

• Airborne dioxins – one type found at 100 times levels previously measured
• Levels of carcinogens in duck ponds and rice paddies exceeded international standards for
agricultural areas and cadmium, copper, nickel, and lead levels in rice paddies were above
international standards
• Heavy metals found in road dust – lead over 300 times that of a control village's road dust
and copper over 100 times

Risk to human health

Disposal of this waste is an environmental concern, as many medical wastes are classified as
infectious or bio hazardous and could potentially lead to the spread of infectious disease. The most
common danger for humans is the infection which also affects other living organisms in the region.
Daily exposure to the waste (landfill) leads to accumulation of harmful substances or microbes in
the person's body.

A 1990 report by the U.S. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry concluded that the
general public is not likely to be adversely affected by biomedical waste generated in the traditional
healthcare setting. They found, however, that biomedical waste from those settings may pose an
injury and exposure risks via occupational contact with medical waste for doctors, nurses, and
janitorial, laundry and refuse workers. Further, there are opportunities for the general public to
come into contact medical waste, such as needles used illicitly outside healthcare settings, or
biomedical waste generated via home health care.

2
CHAPTER-2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE

POLICY ISSUES: E-WASTE HANDLING AND MANAGEMENT RULES-2011

‘E-WASTE HANDLING AND MANAGEMENT RULES-2011’ have become effective from
1st MAY 2012. Rules would be applicable to every producer, consumer and bulk consumer
involved in manufacture, sale, and purchase and processing of electronic equipment or
components. Under these rules the producers and the bulk consumers have to recycle the E-waste
or help in channelizing the e-waste to only the authorised recyclers.

1.3 Some suggestions and issues raised by participants:

• Managing e-waste, and other kinds of waste, is essential for the transition to a low-
carbon, resource-efficient Green Economy, all the speakers emphasized.

• Formal and informal sector recyclers should work together as this would benefit both the
parties.

• Informal sector can use the recycling facilities and infrastructure of formal and organized
sector.

• Technology adoption and modernization is needed for informal sector enterprises to get
benefited from this sector.

• Informal sector needs financial and technological assistance to compete in the emerging
scenario.

• Banks should be ready to fund informal sector so that they would be financially
empowered to get required technology.
• Agencies and government should help informal sector in availing best technology from
developed world.

• SME e-waste recyclers in the organized sector also finding it difficult to get ewaste and
are faced with declining profit.

3
• Government should consider incentives and financing schemes for entrepreneurs so that
more youth entrepreneurs could be attracted in to this sector.

• Training programme and capacity building efforts are required.

• Informal sector needs managerial and modern management training as well as training
and capacity development assistance in all aspects.

4
 CHAPTER-3 REPORT ON PRESENT
INVESTIGATION
3.1 SOURCE OF E-WASTE
Electronic waste especially computer waste is growing exponentially in volume because of increasing
demand of information technology and its application in the national growth process. Various government
department, public as well as private sectors are fast feeding old electronics appliances such as computers,
telephones, etc., into the waste stream.

• Individual household and small business

• Large business, Institutions, government house and Foreign Embassies

• PC manufacturers and retailers

• E waste from imports

• Secondary market

Fig. 2.1 Block diagram of sources of e-waste

5
3.1.1 E-WASTE FROM INDIVIDUAL HOUSHOLDS -
As far as PCs emanating from individual households are concerned, it is difficult to know the exact
quantity. Individual households are not major contributors in India. They account for 22% of total
computers in India. The rest of share, that is 78%, comes from the business sector.

3.1.2 E-WASTE FROM BUSINESS SECTOR-

The business sectors (government department, public or private sector, MNC offices, etc.) were the
earliest users of electronic products; today they account for 78 per cent of total installed PCs. Hence, they
are the major producers of obsolete technology in India. It is observed that the total no. of obsolete PCs
emanating from business as well as from individual households will be around 1.38 million.

3.1.3 E-WASTE FROM MANUFACTORS & RETAILERS -

PCs manufacturer and retailers are next on the list of contributors to the e- waste segment in India. The
waste form this sector comprises defective IC chips, motherboards, cathode ray tubes and other peripheral
items produced during the production process. It also includes defective PCs under guarantee procured
from consumer as replacement items. It is estimated that around 1050 tons per year of waste comes from
this sector.

3.1.4 E-WASTE FROM IMPORTS-

The biggest sources of PC scrap are imports. Huge quantities of e-waste such as monitors, printers,
keyboards, CPU’s, projectors, mobile phones, PVC wires, etc. are imported. The computers thus imported
are of all ranges, models and sizes, and functional as well as junk materials.

3.1.5 SECONDARY MARKET-

These are the waste coming from the secondary market. It includes TV, computers, mobiles, electric
boards etc.

6
3.2 CATEGORIES OF E-WASTE
The electrical and electronic equipment can be broadly categorized into following categories.

• Large household appliances (refrigerator, freezer, washing machine cooking appliances, etc.)

• Small household appliances (vacuum cleaners, watches, grinders, etc.)

• Consumer equipment (TV, radio, video camera, amplifiers, etc.)

• Lightning equipment (CFL, high intensity sodium lamp, etc.)

• Electrical and electronic tools (drills, saws, sewing machine, etc.)

• Toys, leisure, and sport equipment (computer/video games, electric trains, etc.)

• Medical devices (with the exception of all implanted and infected products radiotherapy
equipment, cardiology, dialysis, nuclear medicine, etc.)

• Monitoring and control instruments (smoke detector, heating regulators, thermostat, etc.)
Automatic dispensers (for hot drinks, money, hot and cold bottles, etc.)

The study, ‘Recycling from e-waste to resources,’ was released at a combined meeting of the bodies of
UN Conventions on hazardous chemical wastes, organized by the UNEP, at Bali on February 22. It warns
developing countries, especially fast growing economies like India, China, Brazil and South Africa, that if
efforts are not made to recycle the abandoned electronic equipment, they will be in for big environmental

7
trouble. Apart from mobile phones, old computers, TVs and refrigerators added to the e-waste mountain
in these countries. For instance, computer e-waste in India will have risen by five times in 2020 from the
2007 level. Discarded refrigerators will double or even triple.

The report estimates that India’s current e-waste generation is: 2.75 lakh tonnes from TVs, over one lakh
tonnes from refrigerators, 56,300 tonnes from personal computers, 1,700 tonnes from mobiles and 4,700
from printers. However, China’s problem from e-waste is much more than that of India. It now generates
five lakh tonnes of refrigerator waste and three lakh tonnes of PC waste. Apart from the e-waste generated
by domestic consumption, India, China and other developing countries also have to confront the legal and
illegal dumping of e-waste by western countries, mainly the United States which is, as of now, not bound
by international agreements on hazardous wastes as it has refused to sign such treaties.

8
3.3 GENERATION OF E-WASTE & ITS HAZARDS
3.3.1 INTERNATIONAL SCENARIO
As the fastest growing component of municipal waste across the world, it is estimated that more than 50
MT of e-waste is generated globally every year. In other words, these would fill enough containers on a
train to go round the world once.18 However, since the markets in the West have matured; it is expected
to account for only 2 per cent of the total solid waste generated in developed countries by 2010.
Therefore, with increasing consumerism and an anticipated rise in the sales of electronic products in the
countries experiencing rapid economic and industrial growth, the higher percentage of e-waste in
municipal solid waste is going to be an issue of serious concern.

A report of the United Nations predicted that by 2020, e-waste from old computers would jump by 400
per cent on 2007 levels in China and by 500 per cent in India. Additionally, e-waste from discarded
mobile phones would be about seven times higher than 2007 levels and, in India, 18 times higher by 2020.
Such predictions highlight the urgent need to address the problem of waste in developing countries like
India where the collection and management of e-waste and the recycling process is yet to be properly
regulated. According to the UN Under-Secretary General and Executive Director of the United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP), Ache Steiner, China, India, Brazil, Mexico and others would face
rising environmental damage and health problems if e-waste recycling is left to the vagaries of the
informal sector.

In Europe, the production of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) is one of the fastest growing
business sectors. In Europe the expected growth rate of WEEE is at least 3 to 5% per year.

3.3.2 INDIAN SCENARIO

The report estimates that India’s current e-waste generation is: 2.75 lakh tonnes from TVs, over one lakh
tonnes from refrigerators, 56,300 tonnes from personal computers, 1,700 tonnes from mobiles and 4,700
from printers. However, China’s problem from e-waste is much more than that of India. It now generates
five lakh tonnes of refrigerator waste and three lakh tonnes of PC waste. Apart from the e-waste generated
by domestic consumption, India, China and other developing countries also have to confront the legal and
illegal dumping of e-waste by western countries, mainly the United States which is, as of now, not bound
by international agreements on hazardous wastes as it has refused to sign such treaties.

The UNEP report also notes that global e-waste generation is growing by 40 million tonnes a year. In

9
2007, more than one billion mobiles were sold in the world and the sales are set to jump in the coming
years, particularly in developing countries which are home to large populations. The preliminary
estimates suggest that total WEEE generation in India approximately 1, 46, 180 tones/year which is
expected to exceed 800,000 ton by 2012.

In India to date, e-waste generation is estimated to be around 0.1-0.2%, municipal waste.

Fig. 3.1 Growth of e-waste in India

3.3.3 STATE SCENARIO-

The top states, in order of highest contribution to WEEE, include Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil
Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Delhi, Karnataka, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Punjab.

The city wise ranking of largest WEEE generators is Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata,
Ahmadabad, Hyderabad, Pune, Seurat, and Nagpur.

This is due to the presence of a large number of Info Tech Parks & electronic products manufacturing
companies situated in these areas, which plays the main role in waste generation.

10
Fig. 4.1 Generations of e-waste in India

Fig. 5.1 city-wise generation of e-waste

11
3.3.4 COMPOSITION OF E-WASTE

Fig. 5.1 composition of e-waste

3.4 Problem in urban Area’s

The Indian information technology (IT) industry has been one of the major drivers of change in
the economy in the last decade and has contributed significantly to the digital revolution being
experienced by the world. New electronic gadgets and appliances have infiltrated every aspect of

12
our daily lives, providing our society with more comfort, health and security and with easy
information acquisition and exchange. India has generated about 0.2 million tons of E-waste in
2006 and in 2010 it is about 0.4 million tons and at present the quantum is increasing rapidly.
Studies so far reveal that the total e-waste generation in India from both households and
corporate will reach 0.5 to 0.6 million tons by 2013–2014.

Personal computer penetration in India

Penetration of personal computers in India has increased drastically in the recent years. The
following Figure 1, shows the usage of personal computers for every 1000 person’s increases
year after year.
Of the total e-waste generated in the country, western India accounts for the largest volume at
35%, while the southern, northern and eastern regions account for 30, 21 and 14%, respectively.
The top states in the order of highest contribution to waste electrical and electronic equipment
(WEEE) include Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Delhi,
Karnataka, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab. The Table 1, gives

Table 1 Total WEEE generation in the State of Maharashtra

S. no Place Quantity of
generation ( tonnes
)

1 Navy 4636.96
Mumbai

2 Greater 11,017.06
Mumbai
3 Pune 3584.21
4 Pimpri- 1032.37

Chinchwad

Total 20,270.60

13
The total WEEE generation in the State of Maharashtra. Figure 2, shows the major Indian ports
which receives Waste in large from other countries as well. The city-wise ranking of the largest
WEEE generators is Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad,
Pune, Seurat and Nagpur.

3.5 List of waste types

Waste comes in many different forms and may be categorized in a variety of ways. The types
listed here are not necessarily exclusive and there may be considerable overlap so that one waste
entity may fall into one to many types.

14
• Agricultural waste

Agricultural wastewater treatment is a farm management agenda for controlling pollution

from surface runoff that may be contaminated by chemicals in fertiliser, pesticides, animal
slurry, crop residues or irrigation water.

• Biodegradable waste
Biodegradable waste includes any organic matter in waste which can be broken down into
carbon dioxide, water, methane or simple organic molecules by micro-organisms and other living
things by composting, aerobic digestion, anaerobic digestion or similar processes. In waste
management, it also includes some inorganic materials which can be decomposed by bacteria.
Such materials include gypsum and its products such as plasterboard and other simple organic
sulfates which can decompose to yield hydrogen supplied in anaerobic land-fill conditions.

• Biomedical waste

Biomedical waste is generated from biological and medical sources and activities, such as the
diagnosis, prevention, or treatment of diseases. Common generators (or producers) of
biomedical waste include hospitals, health clinics, nursing homes, emergency medical
services, medical research laboratories, offices of physicians, dentists, and veterinarians,
home health care, and morgues or funeral homes. In healthcare facilities (i.e., hospitals,
clinics, doctor's offices, veterinary hospitals and clinical laboratories), waste with these
characteristics may alternatively be called medical or clinical waste

• Bulky waste
Bulky waste items include discarded furniture (couches, recliners, tables), large appliances
(refrigerators, ovens, TVs), and plumbing fixtures (bathtubs, toilets, sinks). A large amount
(30-60%, depending on area) of bulky waste is picked up by scavengers before it is collected.
Branches, brush, logs and other green waste are also categorized as bulky waste, although
they may be collected separately for shredding and/or composting.

15
• Hazardous waste
Hazardous waste is waste that has substantial or potential threats to public health or the
environment. Characteristic hazardous wastes are materials that are known or tested to exhibit
one or more of the following hazardous traits:

• Ignitability
• Reactivity
• Corrosively Toxicity
• Listed hazardous wastes are materials specifically listed by regulatory authorities as hazardous
wastes which are from non-specific sources, specific sources, or discarded chemical products

Hazardous wastes may be found in different physical states such as gaseous, liquids, or solids. A
hazardous waste is a special type of waste because it cannot be disposed of by common means
like other by-products of our everyday lives. Depending on the physical state of the waste,
treatment and solidification processes might be required.

• Electronic waste (e-waste)

• Electronic waste or e-waste describes discarded electrical or electronic devices. Used electronics
which are destined for reuse, resale, salvage, recycling, or disposal are also considered e-waste.
Informal processing of e-waste in developing countries can lead to adverse human health effects
and environmental pollution.

• Electronic scrap components, such as CPUs, contain potentially harmful materials such as lead,
cadmium, beryllium, or brominated flame retardants. Recycling and disposal of e-waste may
involve significant risk to health of workers and communities in developed countries [and great care
must be taken to avoid unsafe exposure in recycling operations and leaking of materials such as
heavy metals from landfills and incinerator ashes.

16
• Medical waste

Biomedical waste is generated from biological and medical sources and activities, such as the
diagnosis, prevention, or treatment of diseases. Common generators (or producers) of
biomedical waste include hospitals, health clinics, nursing homes, emergency medical
services, medical research laboratories, offices of physicians, dentists, and veterinarians,
home health care, and morgues or funeral homes. In healthcare facilities (i.e., hospitals,
clinics, doctor's offices, veterinary hospitals and clinical laboratories), waste with these
characteristics may alternatively be called medical or clinical waste.

• Municipal solid waste

• Incipit solid waste (MSW), commonly known as trash or garbage in the United States and
rubbish in Britain, is a waste type consisting of everyday items that are discarded by the public.
"Garbage" can also refer specifically to food waste, as in a garbage disposal; the two are
sometimes collected separately.

• In the European Union, the semantic definition is 'mixed municipal waste,' given waste code 20
03 01 in the European Waste Catalog. Although the waste may originate from a number of
sources that has nothing to do with a municipality, the traditional role of municipalities in
collecting and managing these kinds of waste have produced the particular etymology 'municipal.'

• Recyclable waste

Recyclable materials include many kinds of glass, paper, and cardboard, metal, plastic, tires,
textiles, and electronics. The composting or other reuse of biodegradable waste—such as food or
garden waste—is also considered recycling. Materials to be recycled are either brought to a
collection centre or picked up from the curb side, then sorted, cleaned, and reprocessed into new
materials destined for manufacturing.

Mumbai, the financial nerve-centre of India, alone throws away 19,000 to 20,000 tons of
electronic waste a month, excluding the large e-waste it imports from developing nations through

17
its port [12]. There are only two formal recyclers one at Chennai and another in Bangalore for
the whole of South India and one in western India.

18
 3.6 E-waste management

Biomedical waste must be properly managed and disposed of to protect the environment, general
public and workers, especially healthcare and sanitation workers who are at risk of exposure to
biomedical waste as an occupational hazard. Steps in the management of biomedical waste include
generation, accumulation, handling, storage, treatment, transport and disposal.

The development and implementation of a national waste management policy can

improvbiomedical waste management in health facilities in a country

3.6.1 On-site versus off-site

Disposal occurs off-site, at a location that is different from the site of generation. Treatment may
occur on-site or off-site. On-site treatment of large quantities of biomedical waste usually requires
the use of relatively expensive equipment, and is generally only cost effective for very large
hospitals and major universities who have the space, labor and budget to operate such equipment.
Off-site treatment and disposal involves hiring of a biomedical waste disposal service (also called
a truck service) whose employees are trained to collect and haul away biomedical waste in special
containers (usually cardboard boxes, or reusable plastic bins) for treatment at a facility designed
to handle biomedical waste.

19
3.6.2 Generation and accumulation
Biomedical waste should be collected in containers that are leak-proof and sufficiently strong to
prevent breakage during handling. Containers of biomedical waste are marked with a biohazard
symbol. The container, marking, and labels are often red.

To protect the health and safety of laboratory staff as well as neighboring civilians and the
environment, proper waste management equipment, such as the Buckle funnel in Europe and the
ECO Funnel in the U.S., should be utilized in any department which deals with chemical waste. It
is to be dumped after treatment.

3.6.3 Storage
Storage refers to keeping the waste until it is treated on-site or transported off-site for treatment or
disposal. There are many options and containers for storage. Regulatory agencies may limit the
time for which waste can remain in storage. Handling is the act of moving biomedical waste
between the point of generation, accumulation areas, storage locations and on-site treatment
facilities. Workers who handle biomedical waste must observe standard precautions.

3.6.4 Treatment
The goals of biomedical waste treatment are to reduce or eliminate the waste's hazards, and usually
to make the waste unrecognizable. Treatment should render the waste safe for subsequent handling
and disposal. There are several treatment methods that can accomplish these goals.

Biomedical waste is often incinerated. An efficient incinerator will destroy pathogens and sharps.
Source materials are not recognizable in the resulting ash.

An autoclave may also be used to treat biomedical waste. An autoclave uses steam and pressure to
sterilize the waste or reduce its microbiological load to a level at which it may be safely disposed
of. Many healthcare facilities routinely use an autoclave to sterilize medical supplies. If the same
autoclave is used to sterilize supplies and treat biomedical waste, administrative controls must be
used to prevent the waste operations from contaminating the supplies. Effective administrative
controls include operator training, strict procedures, and separate times and space for processing
biomedical waste.

20
Microwave disinfection can also be employed for treatment of biomedical wastes. Microwave
irradiation is a type of non-contact heating technologies for disinfection. Microwave chemistry is
based on efficient heating of materials by microwave dielectric heating effects. When exposed to
microwave frequencies, the dipoles of the water molecules present in cells re-align with the applied
electric field. As the field oscillates, the dipoles attempts to realign itself with the alternating
electric field and in this process, energy is lost in the form of heat through molecular friction and
dielectric loss. Microwave disinfection is a recently developed technology which provides
advantage over old existing technologies of autoclaves as microwave based disinfection has less
cycle time, power consumption and it requires minimal usage of water and consumables as
compared to autoclaves.

For liquids and small quantities, a 1–10% solution of bleach can be used to disinfect biomedical
waste. Solutions of sodium hydroxide and other chemical disinfectants may also be used,
depending on the waste's characteristics. Other treatment methods include heat, alkaline digesters
and the use of microwaves.

21
 3.7 Country-wise regulation and management

India
The Bio-medical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 1998 and further amendments were
passed for the regulation of bio-medical waste management. On 28 the Mar 2016 Biomedical
Waste Management Rules 2016 were also notified by Central Govt. Each state's Pollution Control
Board or Pollution control Committee will be responsible for implementing the new legislation.

In India, though there are a number of different disposal methods, the situation is desultory and
most are harmful rather than helpful. If body fluids are present, the material needs to be incinerated
or put into an autoclave. Although this is the proper method, most medical facilities fail to follow
the regulations. It is often found that biomedical waste is dumped into the ocean, where it
eventually washes up on shore, or in landfills due to improper sorting or negligence when in the
medical facility. Improper disposal can lead to many diseases in animals as well as humans

Many studies took place in Gujarat, India regarding the knowledge of workers in facilities such as
hospitals, nursing homes, or home health. It was found that 26% of doctors and 43% of paramedical
staff were unaware of the risks related to biomedical wastes... The rules and regulations in India
work with The Bio-medical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules from 1998, yet a large
number of health care facilities were found to be sorting the waste incorrectly.

United Kingdom
In the UK, clinical waste and the way it is to be handled is closely regulated. [Applicable legislation
includes the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (Part II), Waste Management Licensing
Regulations 1994, and the Hazardous Waste Regulations (England & Wales) 2005, as well as the
Special Waste Regulations in Scotland.
22
United States
In the United States, biomedical waste is usually regulated as medical waste. In 1988 the U.S.
federal government passed The Medical Waste Tracking Act which allowed the EPA to establish
rules for management of medical waste in some parts of the country. After the Act expired in 1991,
responsibility to regulate and pass laws concerning the disposal of medical waste returned to the
individual states. The states vary in their regulations from none to very strict.

In addition to on-site treatment or pickup by a biomedical waste disposal firm for off-site treatment,
a mail-back disposal option allows generators of waste to return it to the manufacturer. For
instance, waste medicines and equipment can be returned. The waste is shipped through the U.S.
postal service.

23
 3.8 Biomedical waste dispose
One of the major challenges is recycling the printed circuit boards from the electronic wastes. The
circuit boards contain such precious metals as gold, silver, platinum, etc. and such base metals as
copper, iron, aluminum, etc. One way e-waste is processed is by melting circuit boards, burning
cable sheathing to recover copper wire and open- pit acid leaching for separating metals of
value.[57Conventional method employed is mechanical shredding and separation but the recycling
efficiency is low. Alternative methods such as cryogenic decomposition have been studied for
printed circuit board recycling and some other methods are still under investigation. Properly
disposing of or reusing electronics can help prevent health problems, reduce greenhouse-gas
emissions, and create jobs. Reuse and refurbishing offer a more environmentally friendly and
socially conscious alternative to down cycling processes.

• Composting
• Incineration
• Landfill
• Recycling
• Windrow composting

Compost

Compost is organic matter that has been decomposed in a process called composting. This
process recycles various organic materials otherwise regarded as waste products and produces a
soil conditioner (the compost).

Compost is rich in nutrients. It is used, for example, in gardens, landscaping, horticulture, urban
agriculture and organic farming. The compost itself is beneficial for the land in many ways,
including as a soil conditioner, a fertilizer, addition of vital humus or humic acids, and as a
24
natural pesticide for soil. In ecosystems, compost is useful for erosion control, land and stream
reclamation, wetland construction, and as landfill cover (see compost uses).

At the simplest level, the process of composting requires making a heap of wet organic matter
(also called green waste), such as leaves, grass, and food scraps, and waiting for the materials to
break down into humus after a period of months. However, composting also can take place as a
multi-step, closely monitored process with measured inputs of water, air, and carbon- and
nitrogen-rich materials. The decomposition process is aided by shredding the plant matter,
adding water and ensuring proper aeration by regularly turning the mixture when open piles or
"windrows" are used. Earthworms and fungi further break up the material. Bacteria requiring
oxygen to function (aerobic bacteria) and fungi manage the chemical process by converting the
inputs into heat, carbon dioxide, and ammonium

Incineration

Incineration is a waste treatment process that involves the combustion of organic substances
contained in waste materials. Incineration and other high-temperature waste treatment systems
are described as "thermal treatment". Incineration of waste materials converts the waste into ash,
flue gas and heat. The ash is mostly formed by the inorganic constituents of the waste and may
take the form of solid lumps or particulates carried by the flue gas. The flue gases must be
cleaned of gaseous and particulate pollutants before they are dispersed into the atmosphere. In
some cases, the heat generated by incineration can be used to generate electric power.

Incineration with energy recovery is one of several waste-to-energy (WtE) technologies such as
gasification, pyrolysis and anaerobic digestion. While incineration and gasification technologies
are similar in principle, the energy produced from incineration is high-temperature heat whereas
combustible gas is often the main energy product from gasification. Incineration and gasification
may also be implemented without energy and materials recovery.

In several countries, there are still concerns from experts and local communities about the
environmental effect of incinerators (see arguments against incineration).

In some countries, incinerators built just a few decades ago often did not include a materials
separation to remove hazardous, bulky or recyclable materials before combustion. These
25
facilities tended to risk the health of the plant workers and the local environment due to
inadequate levels of gas cleaning and combustion process control. Most of these facilities did not
generate electricity.

Incinerators reduce the solid mass of the original waste by 80–85% and the volume (already
compressed somewhat in garbage trucks) by 95–96%, depending on composition and degree of
recovery of materials such as metals from the ash for recycling.[2] This means that while
incineration does not completely replace landfilling, it significantly reduces the necessary
volume for disposal. Garbage trucks often reduce the volume of waste in a built-in compressor
before delivery to the incinerator. Alternatively, at landfills, the volume of the uncompressed
garbage can be reduced by approximately 70% by using a stationary steel compressor, albeit with
a significant energy cost. In many countries, simpler waste compaction is a common practice for
compaction at landfills.

Landfill

A landfill site (also known as a tip, dump, rubbish dump, garbage dump or dumping ground
and historically as a madden [1]) is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial. It is the
oldest form of waste treatment (although the burial part is modern; historically, refuse was just
left in piles or thrown into pits). Historically, landfills have been the most common method of
organized waste disposal and remain so in many places around the world.

Some landfills are also used for waste management purposes, such as the temporary storage,
consolidation and transfer, or processing of waste material (sorting, treatment, or recycling).
Unless they are stabilized, these areas may experience severe shaking or soil liquefaction of the
ground during a large earthquake.

Recycling method
Reasons for recycling

Obsolete computers and old electronics are valuable sources for secondary raw materials if
recycled; otherwise, these devices are a source of toxins and carcinogens. Rapid technology

26
change, low initial cost, and planned obsolescence have resulted in a fast-growing surplus of
computers and other electronic components around the globe.

Technical solutions are available, but in most cases a legal framework, collection system,
logistics, and other services need to be implemented before applying a technical solution. The
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, estimates 30 to 40 million surplus PCs, classified as
"hazardous household waste would be ready for end-of-life management in the next few years.
The U.S. National Safety Council estimates that 75% of all personal computers ever sold are now
surplus electronics.

In 2007, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) stated that more than 63
million computers in the U.S. were traded in for replacements or discarded. Today, 15% of
electronic devices and equipment are recycled in the United States. Most electronic waste is sent
to landfills or incinerated, which releases materials such as lead, mercury, or cadmium into the
soil, groundwater, and atmosphere, thus having a negative impact on the environment.

Many materials used in computer hardware can be recovered by recycling for use in future
production. Reuse of tin, silicon, iron, aluminum, and a variety of plastics that are present in bulk
in computers or other electronics can reduce the costs of constructing new systems. Components
frequently contain lead, copper, gold and other valuable materials suitable for reclamation.

Computer components contain many toxic substances, like dioxins, polychlorinated biphenyls
(PCBs), cadmium, chromium, radioactive isotopes and mercury. A typical computer monitor
may contain more than 6% lead by weight, much of which is in the lead glass of the cathode ray
tube (CRT). A typical 15 inch (38 cm) computer monitor may contain 1.5 pounds (1 kg) of lea
but other monitors have been estimated to have up to 8 pounds (4 kg) of lead. Circuit boards
contain considerable quantities of lead-tin solders that are more likely to leach into groundwater
or create air pollution due to incineration. In US landfills, about 40% of the lead content levels
are from e-waste. The processing (e.g. incineration and acid treatments) required to reclaim these
precious substances may release, generate, or synthesize toxic byproducts.
27
Export of waste to countries with lower environmental standards is a major concern. The Basel
Convention includes hazardous wastes such as, but not limited to, CRT screens as an item that
may not be exported Trans continentally without prior consent of both the country exporting and
receiving the waste. Companies may find it cost-effective in the short term to sell outdated
computers to less developed countries with lax regulations. It is commonly believed that a
majority of surplus laptops are routed to developing nations. The high value of working and
reusable laptops, computers, and components (e.g. RAM) can help pay the cost of transportation
for many worthless commodities.

Laws governing the exportation of waste electronics are put in place to govern recycling
companies in developed countries which ship waste to Third World countries. However,
concerns about the impact of e-recycling on human health, the health of recycling workers and
environmental degradation remain. For example, due to the lack of strict regulations in
developing countries, sometimes workers smash old products, propelling toxins on to the ground,
contaminating the soil and putting those who do not wear shoes in danger. Other procedures
include burning away wire insulation and acid baths to resell circuit boards. These methods pose
environmental and health hazards, as toxins are released into the air and acid bath residue can
enter the water supply.

Consumer recycling

Consumer recycling options consists of (see below) sale, donating computers directly to
organizations in need, sending devices directly back to their original manufacturers, or getting
components to a convenient recycler or refurbished.

Scrapping/recycling

The rising price of precious metals — coupled with the high rate of unemployment during the
Great Recession — has led to a larger number of amateur "for profit" electronics recyclers.

28
Computer parts, for example, are stripped of their most valuable components and sold for scrap.
Metals like copper, aluminum, lead, gold and palladium are recovered from computers,
televisions and more.

In the recycling process, TVs, monitors, mobile phones and computers are typically tested for
reuse and repaired. If broken, they may be disassembled for parts still having high value if labor
is cheap enough. Other e-waste is shredded to roughly 100 mm pieces and manually checked to
separate out toxic batteries and capacitors which contain poisonous metals. The remaining pieces
are further shredded to ~10 mm and passed under a magnet to remove ferrous metals. An eddy
current ejects non-ferrous metals, which are sorted by density either by a centrifuge or vibrating
plates. Precious metals can be dissolved in acid, sorted, and smelted into ingots. The remaining
glass and plastic fractions are separated by density and sold to re-processors. TVs and monitors
must be manually disassembled to remove either toxic lead in CRTs or the mercury in flat
screens.

Corporations face risks both for incompletely destroyed data and for improperly disposed
computers. In the UK, some recycling companies use a specialized WEEE-registered contractor
to dispose IT equipment and electrical appliances, who disposes it safely and legally. In America,
companies are liable for compliance with regulations even if the recycling process is outsourced
under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. Companies can mitigate these risks by
requiring waivers of liability, audit trails, certificates of data destruction, signed confidentiality
agreements, and random audits of information security. The National Association of Information
Destruction is an international trade association for data destruction providers.

Sale
Online auctions are an alternative for consumers willing to resell for cash less fees, in a
complicated, self-managed, competitive environment where paid listings might not sell. Online
classified ads can be similarly risky due to forgery scams and uncertainty. Take back

When researching computer companies before a computer purchase, consumers can find out if
they offer recycling services. Most major computer manufacturers offer some form of recycling.
At the user's request they may mail in their old computers, or arrange for pickup from the
manufacturer.

29
Hewlett-Packard also offers free recycling, but only one of its "national" recycling programs is
available nationally, rather than in one or two specific states.[31] Hewlett-Packard also offers to
pick up any computer product of any brand for a fee, and to offer a coupon against the purchase
of future computers or components; it was the largest computer recycler in America in 2003, and
it has recycled over 750,000,000 pounds (340,000,000 kg) of electronic waste globally since
1995. It encourages the shared approach of collection points for consumers and recyclers to meet.

Exchange
Manufacturers often offer a free replacement service when purchasing a new PC. Dell Computers
and Apple Inc. take back old products when one buys a new one. Both refurbish and resell their
own computers with a one-year warranty.

Many companies purchase and recycle all brands of working and broken laptops and notebook
computers from individuals and corporations. Building a market for recycling of desktop
computers has proven more difficult than exchange programs for laptops, smartphones and other
smaller electronics.[34] A basic business model is to provide a seller an instant online quote based
on laptop characteristics, then to send a shipping label and prepaid box to the seller, to erase,
reformat, and process the laptop, and to pay rapidly by cheese. A majority of these companies are
also generalized electronic waste recyclers as well; organizations that recycle computers
exclusively include Cash For Laptops, a laptop refurbished in Nevada that claims to be the first
to buy laptops online, in 2001.

Donations/nonprofits
With the constant rising costs due to inflation, many families or schools do not have the
sufficient funds available for computers to be utilized along with education standards. Families
also impacted by disaster suffer as well due to the financial impact of the situation they have
incurred. Many nonprofit organizations, such as InterConnection.org, can be found locally as
well as around the web and give detailed descriptions as to what methods are used for
dissemination and detailed instructions on how to donate. The impact can be seen locally and
globally, affecting thousands of those in need. In Canada nonprofit organizations engaged in
computer recycling, such as The Electronic Recycling Association Calgary, Edmonton,
Vancouver, Winnipeg, Toronto, Montreal, Computers for Schools Canada wide, are very active

30
in collecting and refurbishing computers and laptops to help the nonprofit and charitable sectors
and schools.

Junkyard Computing
The term junkyard computing is a colloquial expression for using old or inferior hardware to
fulfill computational tasks while handling reliability and availability on software level. It utilizes
abstraction of computational resources via software, allowing hardware replacement at very low
effort. Ease of replacement is hereby a corner point since hardware failures are expected at any
time due to the condition of the underlying infrastructure. This paradigm became more widely
used with the introduction of cluster orchestration software like Cabernets or Apache Mesos,
since large monolithic applications require reliability and availability on machine level whereas
this kind of software is fault tolerant by design. Those orchestration tools also introduced fairly
fast set-up processes allowing to use junkyard computing economically and even making this
pattern applicable in the first place. Further use cases were introduced when continuous delivery
was getting more widely accepted. Infrastructure to execute tests and static code analysis was
needed which requires as much performance as possible while being extremely cost effective.
From an economical and technological perspective, junkyard computing is only practicable for a
small amount of users or companies. It already requires a decent amount of physical machines to
compensate hardware failures while maintaining the required reliability and availability. This
implies a direct need for a matching underling infrastructure to house all the computers and
servers. Scaling this paradigm is also quite limited due to the increasing importance of factors
like power efficiency and maintenance efforts, making this kind of computing perfect for
midsized applications.

Down cycling
Down cycling, or cascading, is the recycling of waste where the recycled material is of lower
quality and functionality than the original material.[1] Often, this is due the accumulation of tramp
elements in secondary metals, which may exclude the latter from high-quality applications. For
example, steel scrap from end-of-life vehicles is often contaminated with copper from wires and
tin from coating. This contaminated scrap yields a secondary steel that does not meet the
specifications for automotive steel and therefore, it is mostly applied in the construction sector.

31
The latest guidelines for segregation of bio-medical waste recommend the following color coding

• Red Bag - Syringes (without needles), soiled gloves, catheters, IV tubes etc. should be all
disposed of in a red collared bag, which will later be incinerated.
• Yellow Bag - All dressings, bandages and cotton swabs with body fluids, blood bags, human
anatomical waste, and body parts are to be discarded in yellow bags.
• Cardboard box with blue marking - Glass vials, ampules, and other glass ware is to be
discarded in a cardboard box with a blue marking/sticker.
• White Puncture Proof Container (PPC) - Needles, sharps, blades are disposed of in a white
translucent puncture proof container.
• Black Bags - These are to be used for non-bio-medical waste. In a hospital setup, this
includes stationary, vegetable and fruit peels, leftovers, packaging including that from
medicines, disposable caps, disposable masks, disposable shoe-covers, disposable tea cups,
cartons, sweeping dust, kitchen waste etc.

3.8.1 E-WASTE RECYCLING IN INDIA-

Background –
India, with over 1 billion people, is the second most populous country in the world. Although the
penetration of India’s market for consumer durables is substantially lower than that of developed
countries, the size of India’s market in absolute terms is larger than that of many high-income
countries. Moreover, India is one of the fastest growing economies of the world and the domestic
demand for consumer durables in India has been skyrocketing. From 1998 to 2002, there was a
53.1% increase in the sales of domestic household appliances, both large and small. The growth
in PC ownership per capita in India between 1993 and 200 was 604% compared to a world
average of 181%.

Unfortunately, economic growth and environmental protection indicators are at odds with one
another. India ranks an abysmal 101th on the 2005 Environmental Sustainability Index. A
report by a New Delhi based NGO, Toxic Links, on computer waste, estimated that in India
business and individual households make approximately 1.38 million personal computers

32
obsolete every year. In addition to post consumer e-waste, there is also a large quantity of waste
from manufacturing in the form of defective printed wiring boards, IC chips and other
components discarded in the production process.

In contrast to Switzerland, where consumers pay a recycling fee, in India it is the waste
collectors who pay consumers a positive price for their obsolete appliances. The small collectors
in turn sell their collection to traders who aggregate and sort different kinds of waste and then
sell it to recyclers, who recover the metals.

The entire industry is based on a network existing among collectors, traders and recyclers, each
adding value, and creating jobs, at every point in the chain. As the volume of e-waste has grown,
a noticeable degree of specialization has emerged, with some waste processors focusing only on
e-waste. Given the low levels of initial investment required to start a collection, dismantling,
sorting or recovery business, it is attractive for small entrepreneurs to join the industry. This
recycling network is substantiated by similar results of field work by on solid waste management
in Chennai, India which found a series private – private relationship among waste pickers,
itinerant buyers, dealers, wholesalers and recycling enterprises. The main incentive for the
players is financial profit, not environmental or social awareness. Nevertheless, these trade and
recycling alliances provide employment to many groups of people. E-waste recycling has
become a profitable business, flourishing as an unorganized sector, mainly as backyard
workshops. For Delhi, study estimates the number of unskilled workers in recycling and
recovering operations to be at least 10,000 people. The biggest drawback of the current Indian
system is the uncontrolled emission of hazardous toxics that are going into the air, water and
soil. The health hazards from fumes, ashes and harmful chemicals affect not only the workers
who come into contact with the e- waste, but also the environment.

From the two case studies above, it is clear that the e-waste management systems in the two
countries are very different. Based on observation of both systems. A qualitative comparison is
done using four criteria:

• E-waste per capita

• Employment potential

• Occupational Hazards
33
 • Emissions of Toxics

A higher value in either factor leads to a higher annual accrual of e-waste per capita. Compared
to India, Switzerland shows a higher value for per capita waste with it’s more wide spread use of
appliances and shorter product service lives, given the lower rate of repair and reuse.

Switzerland has a much higher annual accrual of e-waste per capita. In the year 2003, more than

9kg of e-waste per resident were taken back in Switzerland by the SWICO and S.EN.S recycling.
Using the Employment potential offered by the system as one criterion to judge the social impact
of the system, it can be seen that the Indian system generates far more jobs than the Swiss system
per tons of e-waste processed. Collection, dismantling, sorting and segregation and even metal
recovery are done manually in India. Therefore, the e-waste recycling sector, albeit informal,
employs many unskilled or semi-skilled workers.
Study show that at least 10,000 people are involved in the recycling and recovery operations in
Delhi alone. The figure would be much higher if the entire value chain of collectors, transporters
and traders were included.
Comparatively, e-waste management in Switzerland is highly mechanized, and employs far
fewer people. For example, the S.EN.S recycling system, which manages discarded household
appliances totalling over 34,000 tones (for all of Switzerland) engages 470 persons in all
including collection, transportation recycling, administration and controlling. The main reason
for this large difference in compared to the high labour costs in Switzerland.

However, when considered from the perspective of Occupational Hazard, e-waste handlers in
India are at a much higher risk than in Switzerland. One reason for this is the low level of
awareness among workers regarding the hazards of the chemicals and process they are exposed
to and the minimum protection and safety measures they are obliged to take. The other reason is
the lack of formal guidelines as well as a lax enforcement of existing environmental laws.

Collection of e-waste is of crucial importance as this determines the amount of material that is
actually available for recovery. Many collection programmes are in place but their efficiency
varies from place to place and also depends on the device. Improvement of collection rates
depends more on social and societal factors than on collection methods as such, but should be
considered when discussing innovative recycling technologies/systems. When no devices are

34
collected, the feed material to dismantling, pre-processing and end-processing facilities is
lacking and a recycling chain cannot be established. The collected equipment is sorted and then
enters a pre-treatment step. The aim of dismantling and pre-processing is to liberate the materials
and direct them to adequate subsequent final treatment processes. Hazardous substances have to
be removed and stored or treated safely while valuable components/materials need to be taken
out for reuse or to be directed to efficient recovery processes. This includes removal of batteries,
capacitors etc. prior to further (mechanical) pre-treatment. The batteries from the devices can be
sent to dedicated facilities for the recovery of cobalt, nickel and copper. For devices containing
ODS such as refrigerators and air-conditioners, the de-gassing step is crucial in the preprocessing
stage as the refrigerants used (CFC or HCFC in older models) need to be removed carefully to
avoid air-emissions. For CRT containing appliances (e.g. monitors and TVs) coatings in the
panel glass are usually removed as well before end-processing. LCD monitors with mercury-
containing backlights need special care too, as the backlights need to be carefully removed
before further treatment. The circuit boards present in ICT equipment and televisions contain
most of the precious and special metals as well as lead (solders) and flame retardant containing
resins. They can be removed from the devices by manual dismantling, mechanical treatment
(shredding and sorting) or a combination of both. Manual removal of the circuit boards from
telecommunication and information technologies (IT) equipment prior to shredding will prevent
losses of precious and special metals and offers advantages, especially in developing and
transition countries with rather low labour costs. Intensive mechanical pre-processing such as
shredding and automated sorting to remove circuit boards should be avoided, because significant
losses of precious and special metals can occur. One of the causes is unintended co-separation of
trace elements such as precious metals with major fractions such as ferrous, aluminium or
plastics due to incomplete liberation of the complex materials. An intermediate approach to the
removal of hazardous and valuable components can be a very coarse crushing to liberate the
components (circuit boards, batteries etc.) as a whole followed by removal of the components by
hand picking. It has to be noted that pre-processing of e-waste is not always necessary. Small,
highly complex electronic devices such as mobile phones, MP3 players etc. can (after removal of
the battery) also be treated directly by an end-processor to recover the metals. After removal of
the hazardous and other special components described above, the remainder of the ICT, cooling
or television devices can be further separated in the material output streams by manual
dismantling or mechanical shredding and (automated) sorting techniques. Fractions are usually
35
iron, aluminium, copper, plastic etc. It is of utmost importance that the generated output streams
meet the quality requirements of the feed materials for the end-processors. A mismatch between
the two can lead to the creation of difficult or non-recyclable fractions. Well-known examples
are the limits on copper content in fractions for iron/steel recycling, or the limits on iron, nickel
and chromium content in aluminium fractions. Furthermore, a quality mismatch can lead to the
loss of material resources. For example, aluminium would not be recovered during end
processing when mixed with an iron/steel fraction or with a printed wiring board fraction,
iron/steel is not recovered during aluminium recycling, and copper/precious metals are not
recovered during iron/steel recycling. The challenge is to define the right priorities and find a
balance in metals recovery that considers economic and environmental impacts instead of only
trying to maximize weight based recovery rates, regardless of the substances involved. Another
aspect could be the mismatch in physical aspects of the materials, such as particle size. One
could think of shredded e-waste material while the smelters can easily take untraded material.
The final metals recovery from output fractions after pre-treatment takes place at three main
destinations. Ferrous fractions are directed to steel plants for recovery of iron, aluminium
fractions are going to aluminium smelters, while copper/lead fractions, circuit boards and other
precious metals containing fractions are going to e.g. integrated metal smelters, which recover
precious metals, copper and other non-ferrous metals, while isolating the hazardous substances.
Both ferrous and non-ferrous smelters need to have state-of-the-art off-gas treatment in place to
deal with the organic components present in the scrap in the form of paint layers and plastic
particles or resins containing flame retardants. During smelting formation of volatile organic
compounds (VOCs), dioxins can appear and their formation and emission have to be prevented.
Alternatively, painted scrap, such as painted aluminium can be DE lacquered prior to smelting
using appropriate technologies with off-gas control equipment.

36
 3.9 Environmental impact

The processes of dismantling and disposing of electronic waste in developing countries led to a
number of environmental impacts as illustrated in the graphic. Liquid and atmospheric releases
end up in bodies of water, groundwater, soil, and air and therefore in land and sea animals – both
domesticated and wild, in crops eaten by both animals and human, and in drinking water.

One study of environmental effects in Guy, China found the following:

• Airborne dioxins – one type found at 100 times levels previously measured
• Levels of carcinogens in duck ponds and rice paddies exceeded international standards for
agricultural areas and cadmium, copper, nickel, and lead levels in rice paddies were above
international standards
• Heavy metals found in road dust – lead over 300 times that of a control village's road dust
and copper over 100 times

37
The environmental impact of the processing of different electronic waste components
E-Waste Component Process Used Potential Environmental Hazard

Cathode ray tubes (used Breaking and removal of Lead, barium and other heavy metals
in TVs, computer yoke, then dumping leaching into the ground water and
monitors, ATM, video release of toxic phosphor
cameras, and more)

Printed circuit board De-soldering and Air emissions and discharge into rivers
(image behind table – a removal of computer of glass dust, tin, lead, brominated
thin plate on which chips; open burning and dioxin, beryllium cadmium, and mercury
chips and other acid baths to remove
electronic components metals after chips are
are placed) removed.

Chips and other gold Chemical stripping using PAHs, heavy metals, brominated flame
plated components nitric and hydrochloric
retardants discharged directly into rivers
acid and burning of chips
acidifying fish and flora. Tin and lead
contamination of surface and
groundwater. Air emissions of
brominated dioxins, heavy metals, and
PAHs

Plastics from printers, Shredding and low temp Emissions of brominated dioxins, heavy
keyboards, monitors, etc. melting to be reused metals, and hydrocarbons

38
*Waste disposal near hanuman circle Altar (RAJASTHAN)

3.9.1Risk to human health

Disposal of this waste is an environmental concern, as many medical wastes are classified as
infectious or bio hazardous and could potentially lead to the spread of infectious disease. The
most common danger for humans is the infection which also affects other living organisms in the
region. Daily exposure to the waste (landfill) leads to accumulation of harmful substances or
microbes in the person's body.

A 1990 report by the U.S. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry concluded that the
general public is not likely to be adversely affected by biomedical waste generated in the
traditional healthcare setting. They found, however, that biomedical waste from those settings
may pose an injury and exposure risks via occupational contact with medical waste for doctors,
nurses, and janitorial, laundry and refuse workers. Further, there are opportunities for the general

39
public to come into contact medical waste, such as needles used illicitly outside healthcare
settings, or biomedical waste generated via home health care.

**Other important factor & hazardous waste:

3.9.2Consumer awareness efforts

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency encourages electronic recyclers to become certified by
demonstrating to an accredited, independent third party auditor that they meet specific standards
to safely recycle and manage electronics. This should work so as to ensure the highest
environmental standards are being maintained. Two certifications for electronic recyclers currently
exist and are endorsed by the EPA. Customers are encouraged to choose certified electronics
recyclers. Responsible electronics recycling reduces environmental and human health impacts,
increases the use of reusable and refurbished equipment and reduces energy use while conserving
limited resources. The two EPA-endorsed certification programs are Responsible Recyclers
Practices (R2) and E-Stewards. Certified companies ensure they are meeting strict environmental
standards which maximize reuse and recycling, minimize exposure to human health or the
environment, ensure safe management of materials and require destruction of all data used on
electronics. [Certified electronics recyclers have demonstrated through audits and other means that
they continually meet specific high environmental standards and safely manage used electronics.
Once certified, the recycler is held to the particular standard by continual oversight by the
independent accredited certifying body. A certification board accredits and oversees certifying
bodies to ensure that they meet specific responsibilities and are competent to audit and provide
certification.

Some U.S. retailers offer opportunities for consumer recycling of discarded electronic devices In
the US, the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) urges consumers to dispose properly of
endof-life electronics through its recycling locator at www.GreenerGadgets.org. This list only
includes manufacturer and retailer programs that use the strictest standards and third-party certified
40
recycling locations, to provide consumers assurance that their products will be recycled safely and
responsibly. CEA research has found that 58 percent of consumers know where to take their endof-
life electronics, and the electronics industry would very much like to see that level of awareness
increase. Consumer electronics manufacturers and retailers sponsor or operate more than 5,000
recycling locations nationwide and have vowed to recycle one billion pounds annually by 2016,] a
sharp increase from 300 million pounds industry recycled in 2010.

3.9.3 Processing techniques

Recycling the lead from batteries.

In many developed countries, electronic waste processing usually first involves dismantling the
equipment into various parts (metal frames, power supplies, circuit boards, plastics), often by hand,
but increasingly by automated shredding equipment. A typical example is the NADIN electronic
waste processing plant in Novi Iskar, Bulgaria—the largest facility of its kind in Eastern Europe.
The advantages of this process are the human's ability to recognize and save working and repairable
parts, including chips, transistors, RAM, etc. The disadvantage is that the labor is cheapest in
countries with the lowest health and safety standards.

In an alternative bulk system a hopper conveys material for shredding into an unsophisticated
mechanical separator, with screening and granulating machines to separate constituent metal and
plastic fractions, which are sold to smelters or plastics recyclers. Such recycling machinery is
enclosed and employs a dust collection system. Some of the emissions are caught by scrubbers and
screens. Magnets, eddy currents, and Trammel screens are employed to separate glass, plastic, and
ferrous and nonferrous metals, which can then be further separated at a smelter.

41
Leaded glass from CRTs is reused in car batteries, ammunition, and lead wheel weights, or sold to
foundries as a fluxing agent in processing raw lead ore. Copper, gold, palladium, silver and tin are
valuable metals sold to smelters for recycling. Hazardous smoke and gases are captured, contained
and treated to mitigate environmental threat. These methods allow for safe reclamation of all
valuable computer construction materials. Hewlett-Packard product recycling solutions manager
Renee St. Denis describes its process as: "We move them through giant shredders about 30 feet
tall and it shreds everything into pieces about the size of a quarter. Once your disk drive is shredded
into pieces about this big, it's hard to get the data off" An ideal electronic waste recycling plant
combines dismantling for component recovery with increased cost-effective processing of bulk
electronic waste. Reuse is an alternative option to recycling because it extends the lifespan of a
device. Devices still need eventual recycling, but by allowing others to purchase used electronics,
recycling can be postponed and value gained from device use.

3.9.4 Benefits of recycling

Recycling raw materials from end-of-life electronics is the most effective solution to the growing
e-waste problem. Most electronic devices contain a variety of materials, including metals that can
be recovered for future uses. By dismantling and providing reuse possibilities, intact natural
resources are conserved and air and water pollution caused by hazardous disposal is avoided.

Additionally, recycling reduces the amount of greenhouse gas emissions caused by the
manufacturing of new proud another benefit of recycling e-waste is that many of the materials can
be recycled and re-used again. Materials that can be recycled include "ferrous (iron-based) and
non-ferrous metals, glass, and various types of plastic." “Non-ferrous metals, mainly aluminum
and copper can all be re-smelted and re-manufactured. Ferrous metals such as steel and iron can
be also be re-used. Due to the recent surge in popularity in 3D printing, certain 3D printers have
been designed (FDM variety) to produce waste that can be easily recycled which decreases the
amount of harmful pollutants in the atmosphere. The excess plastic from these printers that comes
out as a byproduct can also be reused to create new 3D printed creations.

Benefits of recycling are extended when responsible recycling methods are used. In the U.S.,
responsible recycling aims to minimize the dangers to human health and the environment that
disposed and dismantled electronics can create. Responsible recycling ensures best management
practices of the electronics being recycled, worker health and safety, and consideration for the
42
environment locally and abroad.] In Europe, metals that are recycled are returned to companies of
origin at a reduced cost.] Through a committed recycling system, manufacturers in Japan have been
pushed to make their products more sustainable. Since many companies were responsible for the
recycling of their own products, this imposed responsibility on manufacturers requiring many to
redesign their infrastructure. As a result, manufacturers in Japan have the added option to sell the
recycled metals.

3.9.5 Electronic waste substances

Some computer components can be reused in assembling new computer products, while others are
reduced to metals that can be reused in applications as varied as construction, flatware, and jewelry.
Substances found in large quantities include epoxy resins, fiberglass, PCBs, PVC (polyvinyl
chlorides), thermosetting plastics, lead, tin, copper, silicon, beryllium, carbon, iron, and aluminum.
Elements found in small amounts include cadmium, mercury, and thallium Elements found in trace
amounts include americium, antimony, arsenic, barium, bismuth, boron, cobalt, europium, gallium,
germanium, gold, indium, lithium, manganese, nickel, niobium, palladium, platinum, rhodium,
ruthenium, selenium, silver, tantalum, terbium, thorium, titanium, vanadium, and yttrium. Almost
all electronics contain lead and tin (as solder) and copper (as wire and printed circuit board tracks),
though the use of lead-free solder is now spreading rapidly. The following are ordinary
applications:

43
3.9.6 Hazardous**
Minimize the generation of hazardous waste.
Dispose of hazardous wastes within the country of generation effectively in an
environmentally sound manner.
Establish enhanced controls on exports and imports of hazardous waste.
Prohibit shipments of hazardous wastes to countries lacking the legal and technical capacity.

44
DIFFERENT TYPES OF ON- GRID SYSTEMS
Hazards due to Incineration-
The incineration of brominated flame-retardants at a low temperature of 600-800 degree Celsius
may lead to the generation of extremely toxic polybrominated dioxins (PBDDs) and
polybrominated furans (Pads). Significant quantity of PVC is contained in e-waste, which makes
the flue gas residues and air emissions particularly dangerous.

Hazards due to Land filling-

It has become common knowledge that all landfills leak. Even the best “state of the art” landfills
are not completely tight throughout their lifetimes and a certain amount of chemical and metal
leaching will occur. The situation is worse for older or less stringent dump sites. Mercury will
leach when certain electronic devices, such as circuit breakers are destroyed. The same is true for
PCBs from a consider. When brominated flame retarded plastics or cadmium containing plastics
are land filled, both PBDE and the cadmium may leach into the soil and groundwater. It has been
found that significant amounts of lead ions are dissolved from broken lead containing glass, such
as the cone glass of cathode ray tubes, when mixed with acid waters which commonly occur in
landfills.

Hazards due to recycling

Recycling of hazardous products has little environmental benefit. It simply moves the hazard into
secondary products that will have to be disposed of eventually. Unless the goal is to redesign the
product to use non-hazardous materials, such recycling is an ineffective solution. Halogenated
substance contained in e-waste, in particular brominated flame-retardants are also of concern
during the extrusion of plastics, which is a part of plastic recycling. Environmental problems
during the recycling of e-waste are not only linked to halogenated substances. A hazardous
emission into the air also result from recycling of e-waste containing heavy metals, such as lead
and cadmium. These emissions could be significantly reduced by means of pre-treatment
operation. Another problem with heavy metals and halogenated substances in untreated e-waste

45
occurs during the shredding process. Since most of e-waste are shredded without proper
disassembly, hazardous substances, such as PCB containing in capacitors, may be dispersed into
the recovered metals and the shredder waste.

E-Waste Electric Appliances in which Adverse Health Effects

Component they are found

Americium The radioactive source in smoke It is known to be carcinogenic.

alarms.

Lead Solder, CRT monitor glass,
leadacid batteries, some
formulations of PVC. A typical
15-inch cathode ray tube may
contain 1.5 pounds of lead,] but
other CRTs have been estimated
as having up to 8 pounds of lead.
Adverse effects of lead exposure include
impaired cognitive function, behavioural
disturbances, attention deficits, and
hyperactivity, conduct problems, and
lower IQ. These effects are most
damaging to children whose developing
nervous systems are very susceptible to
damage caused by lead, cadmium, and
mercury.

46
Mercury Found in fluorescent tubes Health effects include sensory
(numerous applications), tilt
impairment, dermatitis, memory loss, and
switches (mechanical doorbells,
thermostats), and cafe backlights muscle weakness. Exposure in-utero
in flat screen monitors.
causes fatal deficits in motor function,
attention, and verbal domains.
Environmental effects in animals include
death, reduced fertility, and slower
growth and development.

Cadmium Found in light-sensitive resistors, The inhalation of cadmium can cause

corrosion-resistant alloys for severe damage to the lungs and is also
marine and aviation known to cause kidney damage.
environments, and Cadmium is also associated with deficits
nickelcadmium batteries. The in cognition, learning, behaviour, and
most common form of cadmium is neuromata skills in children.
found in Nickel-cadmium
rechargeable batteries. These
batteries tend to contain between
6 and 18% cadmium. The sale of
Nickel-Cadmium batteries has
been banned in the European
Union except for medical use.
When not properly recycled it can
leach into the soil, harming
microorganisms and disrupting
the soil ecosystem. Exposure is
caused by proximity to hazardous
waste sites and factories and
workers in the metal refining
industry.

47
Hexavalent Used in metal coatings to protect A known carcinogen after occupational
chromium from corrosion.
Sculpture Found in lead-acid batteries.
Brominated Flame Used as flame retardants in
Retardants (BFRs) plastics in most electronics.
Includes PBBs, PBDE, Decade,
OctaBDE, and PentaBDE.
48
inhalation exposure.
There is also evidence of cytotoxic and
nontoxic effects of some chemicals,
which have been shown to inhibit cell
proliferation, cause cell membrane
lesion, cause DNA single-strand breaks,
and elevate Reactive Oxygen Species
(ROS) levels.
Health effects include liver damage,
kidney damage, heart damage, and eye
and throat irritation. When released into
the environment, it can create sulphuric
acid through sculpture dioxide.
Health effects include impaired
development of the nervous system,
thyroid problems, and liver problems.
Environmental effects: similar effects as
in animals as humans. PBBs were banned
from 1973 to 1977 on. PCBs were banned
during the 1980s.
Perfluorooctanoic Used as an antistatic additive in Studies in mice have found the following
acid (PFOA) industrial applications and found health effects: Hepatotoxicity,
in electronics, also found in developmental toxicity, immunotoxicity,
nonstick cookware (PTFE). hormonal effects and carcinogenic
PFOAs are formed synthetically effects. Studies have found increased
through environmental maternal PFOA levels to be associated
degradation. with an increased risk of spontaneous
abortion (miscarriage) and stillbirth.
Increased maternal levels of PFOA are
also associated with decreases in mean
gestational age (preterm birth), mean
birth weight (low birth weight), mean
birth length (small for gestational age),
and mean APGAR score.

Beryllium oxide Filler in some thermal interface Occupational exposures associated with
lung cancer, other common adverse
materials such as thermal grease
health effects are beryllium sensitization,
used on heat sinks for CPUs and chronic beryllium disease, and acute
beryllium disease.
power transistors,[94] magnetrons,
X-ray-transparent ceramic
windows, heat transfer fins in
vacuum tubes, and gas lasers.

Polyvinyl Commonly found in electronics In the manufacturing phase, toxic and

chloride(PVC) and is typically used as insulation hazardous raw material, including
for electrical cables. dioxins are released. PVC such as
chlorine tend to bio accumulate.

49
Other health effects

• DNA breaks can increase the likelihood of developing cancer (if the damage is to a tumour
suppressor gene)
• DNA damages are a special problem in non-dividing or slowly dividing cells, where
unrepaired damages will tend to accumulate over time. On the other hand, in rapidly dividing
cells, unrepaired DNA damages that do not kill the cell by blocking replication will tend to
cause replication errors and thus mutation
• Elevated Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) levels can cause damage to cell structures
(oxidative stress

50
 Additional Figure data:

1. Treated and generated e waste in India

51
52
 3.Hazardous waste generation in rajasthan

List of table
Table 1: Different categories of E-Waste
Classification Examples

53
Large and small refrigerator,freezer,washing machine, cooking
household appliances,grinders,watches etc.
appliances

Lighting bulb, FL
equipment’s

IT and PCs,Printers,telephones
telecommunication

Consumer equipment TV,radio,video

camera, amplifiers

Electrical and drills,saws,sewing machine

electronic tools

Toys leisure, computer/video games, electric trains

and sport
equipment

Medical devices with the exception of all implanted and infected products radiotherapy
equipment, dialysis, nuclear medicine

Monitoring and smoke detector, heating

control instruments regulators, thermostat

Automatic for hot drinks,money,hot and

dispensers cold bottles

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Table 2: The toxic components present in e-waste

Component E-waste product and operation disposal Adverse Health

Effects

Chromium Used to protect metal housings Inhaling hexavalent chromium or use

Table 3: Hazardous effects due to E-Waste Treatment

Treatment Hazards

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Landfilling Leakage of toxic substances

Recycling Accidental spillage of hazardous

substances

Incineration Escaping of flue gases to the

Atmosphere

CHAPTER-4 RESULT & DISCUSSION

Background:-

• Discarded electrical or electronic devices are called as ‘e-waste (Electronic waste)’.

• E-waste is also called as e-scrap, or Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE).
• The electronic industry is the world’s largest and fastest growing manufacturing industry and
so does e-waste.

56
• The fraction of iron, aluminum, gold, copper in e-waste is over 60%, plastic is about 30%,
hazardous substances is about 2.70%, and remaining is wastage.

Causes:-

• The rapid growth of users of computers and other technology devices.

• Disposal of technology devices is not an easy task, as they contain hazardous materials.

• Average life span of electronic devices is decreasing as people are updating their houses with
new electronic devices always.
• Transferring e-waste from developed countries to developing countries in the name of
donations.
• Less life time of electronic goods.
• Nobody is interested to reuse and repair the electronic goods as there are new products
available in attractive prices.

Problems:-

• Resources are wasted as valuable materials in e-waste are being dumped in normal wastage.
• Toxic materials in e-waste cause severe health risk.
• Environmental damage.
• Land filling of e-wastes can lead to the launching of lead into the ground water.
• When CRT (cathode ray tube) is burned, it emits toxic fumes into the air.
• The cadmium from one mobile battery can pollute 600 m3 of water

• Informal recyclers are attracting the poor people in the name of employment and making
them disassemble the components with bare hands and without any precautions, which is
highly dangerous for their health.

57
Solutions:-

• Manufacturer must take the responsibility for the product after the completion of its life time
to disassemble and reuse or recycle the components.
• Customers must buy products from the manufacturers who take back their product or who
offer discount on new products by taking old products.
• Manufacturers must try to design the eco-friendly products as lead-free, halogen-free and
recycled plastics.
• Life time of products must be increased.
• Government must take action on informal recyclers.
• Collection centers of expired electronic and electrical goods must be there. So that e-waste
will not be mixed and burned along with normal wastage.
• Public awareness programs must be conducted because the role consumers is very high in
this issue.

CHAPTER-5 SUMMARY & CONCLUSION

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The electrical and electronic waste (e-waste) is one of the fastest growing waste streams in the
world. The increasing “market penetration” in developing countries, “replacement market” in
developed countries and “high obsolescence rate” make e-waste as one of the fastest growing
waste streams. Environmental issues and trade associated with e-waste at local, Tran’s boundary
and international level has driven many countries to introduce interventions. In accordance with
the National Environmental Policy (NEP) and to address sustainable development concerns,
there is a need to facilitate the recovery and/or reuse of useful materials from waste generated
58
from a process and/or from the use of any material thereby, reducing the wastes destined for final
disposal and to ensure the environmentally sound management of all materials.

The NEP also encourages giving legal recognition and strengthening the informal sectors system
for collection and recycling of various materials. In particular considering the high recyclable
potential of e-waste such wastes should be subject to recycling in an environmentally sound
manner-waste comprises of wastes generated from used electronic devices and household
appliances which are not fit for their original intended use and are destined for recovery,
recycling or disposal. Such wastes encompasses wide range of electrical and electronic devices
such as computers, hand held cellular phones, personal stereos, including large household
appliances such as refrigerators, air conditioners etc.

E-wastes contain over 1000 different substances many of which are toxic and potentially
hazardous to environment and human health, if these are not handled in an environmentally
sound manner. The growth of e-waste has significant economic and social impacts. The increase
of electrical and electronic products, consumption rates and higher obsolescence rate leads to
higher generation of e-waste. The increasing obsolescence rate of electronic products also adds
to the huge import of used electronics products. The e-waste inventory based on this
obsolescence rate in India for the year 2005has been estimated to be 1,46,180 tonnes which is
expected to exceed 8,00,000tonnes by 2012.The objective of these Guidelines is to provide
guidance for identification of various sources of waste electrical and electronic equipment’s
(ewaste) and prescribed procedures for handling e-waste in an environmentally sound manner.

These Guidelines shall apply to all those who handle e-waste which includes the generators,
collectors, transporters, dismantlers, recyclers and stakeholders of-wastes irrespective of their
scale of operation. In India, there are no specific environmental laws or Guidelines for e-waste.
None of the existing environmental laws have any direct reference to electronic

59
Waste or refer to its handling as hazardous in nature. However several provisions of these laws
may apply to various aspects of electronic wastes. Since e-waste or its constituents fall under the
category of ‘hazardous” and “non-hazardous waste”, they shall be covered under the purview of
“The Hazardous Waste Management Rules, 2003”.Composition of e-waste is very diverse and
differs in products across different categories. Broadly, it consists of ferrous and non-ferrous
metals, plastics, glass, wood & plywood, printed circuit boards, concrete and ceramics, rubber
and other items. Iron and steel constitutes about 50% of the e-waste followed by plastics (21%),
nonferrous metals (13%) and other constituents. Non-ferrous metals consist of metals like
copper, aluminium and precious metals ex. silver, gold, platinum, palladium etc. The presence of
elements like lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium, selenium, and hexavalent chromium and flame
retardants beyond threshold quantities in e-waste classifies them as hazardous waste. The ewaste
inventory based on this obsolescence rate and installed base in India for the year 2005 has been
estimated to be 146180.00 tonnes. This is expected to exceed 8, 00,000 tonnes by 2012.

There is a lack of authentic and comprehensive data on e-waste availability for domestic
generation of e-wasteland the various State Pollution Control Boards have initiated the exercise
to collect data on e-waste generation. Sixty-five cities in India generate more than 60% of the
total e-waste generated in India. Ten states generate 70% of the total e-waste generated in India.
Maharashtra ranks first followed by Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal,
Delhi, Karnataka, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab in the list of e-waste generating states in
India. Among top ten cities generating e-waste, Mumbai ranks first followed by Delhi,
Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Pune, Seurat and Nagpur. Under Rule 3,
“Definitions”, E-waste can be defined as “Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment including
all components, sub-assemblies and their fractions except batteries falling under Schedule 1,
Schedule 2 and Schedule 3”of these rules

There is an increasing trend in the reduction in the use of hazardous substances such as lead,
cadmium, mercury, polychlorinated biphenyls (pubs) and other toxic and hazardous substances
60
for which safe substitutes have been found. Many countries have adopted the Rosh regulations in
the manufacture of electrical and electronic equipments.The Extended Producer Responsibility
(EPR) is an environment protection strategy that makes the producer responsible for the entire
life cycle of the product, especially for take back, recycle and final disposal of the product. Thus
the producers’ responsibility is extended to the post-consumer stage of the product life cycle.
This needs to be included in the legislative framework making

EPR a mandatory activity associated with the production of electronic and electrical equipment’s
over a period of time. Environmentally sound E-waste treatment technology was identified at
three levels. The first level included decontamination, dismantling and segregation. The second
level included shredding and four special treatment processes like electromagnetic separation,
eddy current separation, CRT breaking and treatment and density separation using water.

Level treatment included recovery of metals and disposal of hazardous E-waste fractions
including plastics with flame retardants, CFCs, capacitors, Mercury, lead and other items. All the
three levels of e-waste treatment are based on material flow. The material flows from Level
treatment. After the third level treatment, the residues are disposed of either in TSDF or
incinerated. The efficiency of operations at first and second level determines the quantity of
residues going to TSDF or incineration.
The establishment of E-waste Recycling & Treatment Facility shall be in line with the existing
Guidelines/best practices/requirements in India for establishing and operating “Recycling and
Treatment and Disposal Facilities” for hazardous wastes. Such facilities shall be set up in the
organized sector. However, the activities presently operating in the informal sector need to be
upgraded to provide a support system for the integrated facility. This would enable to bring then
on-formal sector in the main stream of the activity and facilitate to ensure environmental
compliances.

The procedures for setting up & management of e-waste facility shall includelicensesfrom all
appropriate governing authorities such as environmental clearance, recycler registration from
61
Central Pollution Control Board under Hercules, obtaining of consents under water act, Air act
and authorization from the state pollution control board. These Guidelines are reference
document for the management, handling and disposal of e-wastes. These are intended to provide
guidance and broad outline, however, the specific methods of treatment and disposal for specific
wastes needs to be worked out according to the hazard/risk potential of the waste under question.
These Guidelines provide the minimum practice required to be followed in the management of
ewastes and the
State Department of Environment or State Pollution Control Board May
prescribe more stringent norms as deemed necessary.

CONCLUSION

Electronic equipment is one of the largest known source of heavy metals and organic pollutants
in the waste stream. Without effective collection, reuse, and recycling system, highly toxic
chemicals are found in electronic appliances like lead, beryllium, mercury, cadmium chromium,
brominated flame retardant, etc. will continue to contaminate soil and ground water as well as
pollute the air, posing a threat to wildlife and people.

In India, domestic generation and imports are the two main sources of e-waste. It is impossible to
determine how much e-waste is generated in India and how much is imported. But the growing
quantities at a disastrous proportion and uncontrolled disposal practices are alarming the
situation from an environmental point of view.

Reuse and recycling of electronic equipment is a beneficial alternative than disposal as it reduces
the amount of toxic and hazardous substances that may enter the environment through disposal.

62
 CHAPTER-6 FUTURE SCOPE

The Future of E-waste in India

You may know that electronic waste is one of the fastest growing kinds of waste streams in the
world. Electronic waste is waste generated from electronic goods, primarily made-up of metals
and plastics and containing toxic substances such as lead, mercury, cadmium, arsenic, and
flameretardants. India with its magnitude and is obviously at the forefront of this rapid growth in
ewaste which, if recycled in a non-scientific manner, can lead not only to a terrible waste of
diminishing natural resources but also cause the irreparable damage to the environment and to the
health of the people working within this industry. On the other hand, if tackled safely and
scientifically, this ‘trash’ can be re-used, recycled, and will greatly reduce our carbon footprint,

63
our unsustainable dependence on virgin metals mining, and allow us to leave a healthier world
for the generations to come.

WHERE DOES THE PROBLEM LIE?

In addition to the damage this e-waste stream causes to the environment, India also has the twin
problem in which its domestic e-waste industry employs an informal sector (rag pickers-mostly
living in slums and employing mostly children) that are unskilled, impoverished and, due to their
un-scientific methods of recycling e-waste (burning waste over small fires, in open air, and with
no shoes, gloves, or masks), unaware of the grave damage they are causing to their own health to
earn their daily subsistence.

According to a recent report by UN’s Step Initiative, which was setup to tackle the world’s
ewaste crisis, nearly 50m tones of e-waste was generated worldwide in 2012-or about 7kg for
every person on the planet. The report says that the global volume of electronic waste is expected
to grow by 33% in the next four years, and also indicates that most of this waste will be illegally
dumped in developing countries such as India. India itself produced 330 MT of e-waste in 2008,
and over 800 MT in 2012, with total estimated market size of $500 MM.

64
Currently most (approx. 95%) of the electronic waste in India is collected, dismantled, and
‘recycled’ by the informal/unorganized sector (consisting of unskilled and impoverished people
living in the slums), which dismantles waste by breaking and burning it in open air-releasing
carcinogens into the atmosphere, and littering the ground with shards containing lead and
cadmium-damaging both the environment and the health of the people (mostly children) working
in this sector.

To stem the flow of e-waste to the informal sector, Got of India, on May 1 2012, enforced law
(E-Waste Management and Handling Rules) which made it illegal for any member of the e-waste
producing ecosystem to dispose of their e-waste through non-government authorized collectors,
dismantlers, and recyclers of e-waste, with serious repercussions for breach.

But, is having a law in place enough? In the western developed world, e-waste recycling laws
have been in place for decades, yet countries are still not able to efficiently re-use and recycle the
growing waste generated from electronics. A new report by Wrap (Waste & Resources Action
Plan), an independent body created by the UK Government to promote recycling, states that out
of the 1.4 MN tons of waste from electrical and electronic goods disposed of in the UK ‘nearly
40% goes to landfill and less than 10% is reused, despite the fact that much of it either works or
could be repaired’.

65
THE SOLUTION

So what can we learn from this as we think about the recycling future of India? Can having laws
in place because enough shift in mindset to responsibly tackle the growing mountain of e-waste
produced in India and dumped here illegally?

In India this trash could well be turned to treasure. With a growing middle class and increasing
urbanization, India has a massive and rapidly growing market for electronics re-use. Many in this
country don’t have the resources to buy new electronics, but would be happy to have access to
used ones. India, as a net importer of metals and plastics, also has sufficient metal and plastic
industry demand to consume all raw materials extracted from non-re-usable electronic, reducing
our dependency of imports. What India needs are more services that can get unused devices out
of people’s drawers and into the hands of people who could use them, and clean, efficient
technology to recycle waste and extract minerals, metals, and plastics from them with maximum
output and little or no pollution. Law enforcing agencies need to create an environment that
cultivates the growth of such e-waste management services. This can be done through education,
incentivization and taxation. Educating Indians about the ill effects of improper recycling and

66
spreading the word about companies will help. Penalizing businesses that are still not following
the E-Waste Management and Handling Rules will help incentivize them to use authorized
‘clean’ recyclers. Enforcing the new EPR (Extended Producer Responsibility) Law will
incentivize manufacturers and consumer to support trade-in.

The problem is large and concerns us all. The solution could be a boon to the nation if the
approach for a solution is quick, pro-active, and worked on together by government,
manufacturers, consumers, and corporates. We all have our part to play.

CHAPTER-7 REFERENCE

[1]. pv-ewaste-recycling-final-report-choice-modelling-s.pdf/slideshare.com.
67
[2]. E_waste_in_india/full report/slideshare.com.

[3]. Facts_and_Figures_on_EWaste_and_Recycling.pdf/seminarsonly.com

[4]. Recycling_From_e-waste_to_resources.pdf/ewaste_research/seminarsonly.com

[5].E-waste scenario in India, its management and implication.SushantB.Wath.P.S.Dutt

Chakrabarti received; 25 may 2009/Accepted: 18 Jan 2010 Journal of environmental monitoring
assessment

1. http://recycle.uoregon.edu/edu_promo_simple_materials_text.htm
http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2012-01-29/news/30675964_1_india-
rankspollution-control-management 13.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_environmental_organizations

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