Chemical hazards associated with treatment of waste electrical and electronic equipment

This review paper summarizes the existing knowledge on the chemical hazards associated with recycling and other end-of-life treatment options of waste electrical and electronic equipment (e-waste). The hazards arise from the presence of heavy metals (e.g., mercury, cadmium, lead, etc.), flame retardants (e.g., pentabromophenol, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), tetrabromobisphenol-A (TBBPA), etc.) and other potentially harmful substances in e-waste. If improperly managed, the substances may pose significant human and environmental health risks. The review describes the potentially hazardous content of e-waste, examines the existing e-waste management practices and presents scientific data on human exposure to chemicals, workplace and environmental pollution associated with the three major e-waste management options, i.e., recycling, incineration and landfilling. The existing e-waste management practices and associated hazards are reviewed separately for developed and developing countries. Finally, based on this review, the paper identifies gaps in the existing knowledge and makes some recommendations for future research.     

The challenge of electronic waste (e-waste) management in developing countries

Information and telecommunications technology (ICT) and computer Internet networking has penetrated nearly every aspect of modern life, and is positively affecting human life even in the most remote areas of the developing countries. The rapid growth in ICT has led to an improvement in the capacity of computers but simultaneously to a decrease in the products lifetime as a result of which increasingly large quantities of waste electrical and electronic equipment (e-waste) are generated annually. ICT development in most developing countries, particularly in Africa, depends more on secondhand or refurbished EEEs most of which are imported without confirmatory testing for functionality. As a result large quantities of e-waste are presently being managed in these countries. The challenges facing the developing countries in e-waste management include: an absence of infrastructure for appropriate waste management, an absence of legislation dealing specifically with e-waste, an absence of any framework for end-of-life (EoL) product take-back or implementation of extended producer responsibility (EPR). This study examines these issues as they relate to practices in developing countries with emphasis on the prevailing situation in Nigeria. Effective management of e-waste in the developing countries demands the implementation of EPR, the establishment of product reuse through remanufacturing and the introduction of efficient recycling facilities. The implementation of a global system for the standardization and certification/labelling of secondhand appliances intended for export to developing countries will be required to control the export of electronic recyclables (e-scarp) in the name of secondhand appliances.     

Electrical and electronic waste management in China: progress and the barriers to overcome.

Serious adverse impacts on the environment and human health from e-waste recycling have occurred in the past and continue to occur in China today, due to a lack of national management strategies. China has made great efforts to face the challenges of the approaching peak increase in the domestic generation of e-waste and the illegal shipment of e-waste from other countries. This study examined recent progress and analysed the main problems associated with this issue in China. It was found that the material and the financial flows of e-waste in China had their own specific characteristics. Nearly 60% of the generated e-wastes were sold to private individual collectors and passed into informal recycling processes. More than 90% of Chinese citizens are reluctant to pay for the recycling of their e-waste. This is due to their traditional understanding that there remained value in these end-of-life products. Regulations concerning e-waste in China have been drafted but their deficiencies are obvious. The extended producer responsibilities (EPR) have been introduced but are not well defined. Eight formal facilities have been planned and are under construction or are in operation along the eastern coast of China but it will be difficult for them to compete with the informal processes for the reasons identified during the study.     

Electronic waste (e-waste): material flows and management practices in Nigeria

The growth in electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) production and consumption has been exponential in the last two decades. This has been as a result of the rapid changes in equipment features and capabilities, decrease in prices, and the growth in internet use. This creates a large volume of waste stream of obsolete electrical and electronic devices (e-waste) in developed countries. There is high level of trans-boundary movement of these devices as secondhand electronic equipment into developing countries in an attempt to bridge the 'digital divide'. The past decade has witnessed a phenomenal advancement in information and communication technology (ICT) in Nigeria, most of which rely on imported secondhand devices. This paper attempts to review the material flow of secondhand/scrap electronic devices into Nigeria, the current management practices for e-waste and the environmental and health implications of such low-end management practices. Establishment of formal recycling facilities, introduction of legislation dealing specifically with e-waste and the confirmation of the functionality of secondhand EEE prior to importation are some of the options available to the government in dealing with this difficult issue.     

Policy trends of e-waste management in Asia

This paper examines the policy trends of electronic waste (e-waste) management in Asia. E-waste is a rapidly growing waste stream in the world today and is estimated to be growing at 3–5 % per annum. Fast paced obsolescence in the electronic sector has resulted in the generation of e-waste. There are concerns that e-waste generated in developed countries is ending up in developing countries especially in Asia resulting in adverse environmental and health impacts. Consequently, a number of countries in Asia are developing policy instruments to ensure the proper management of e-waste. These include e-waste regulatory frameworks, data and inventories, and infrastructure and capacity building. These trends indicate a positive development path towards sustainable e-waste management in Asia. Nevertheless, potential limiting obstacles for e-waste management in Asia may also include an over-reliance on legislation to drive e-waste management or the simplistic adoption of policies from developed countries without taking into context the local political, cultural and socio-economic waste management issues. Consequently, this paper suggest that e-waste policy development may require a more customized approach where, instead of addressing e-waste in isolation, it should be addressed as part of the national development agenda that integrates green economy assessment and strategic environmental assessment as part of national policy planning. In conclusion, policy trends of e-waste management in Asia appear promising provided there is a paradigm shift from an e-waste perception of an environment problem to a e-waste perception of a potential opportunity as sustainable national green growth strategy in Asia.     

Difficulties in applying extended producer responsibility policies in developing countries: case studies in e-waste recycling in China and Thailand

Developing Asian countries have started to apply the principle of extended producer responsibility (EPR) to electronics and electrical equipment waste (e-waste). This policy approach aims to give electronic appliance manufacturers and importers responsibility for the collection and recycling of discarded electronic equipment. China and Thailand have drafted regulations on the recycling of e-waste with common characteristics such as the financial responsibility of producers and subsidies for collection. Although the proposed system is sensible, taking into account the fact that e-waste is a market-traded commodity, there are two major difficulties in implementing EPR in developing countries. First, it may be difficult for governments to collect funds from producers or importers if smuggled, imitation, or small shop-assembled products have a large share in the market. Second, the system creates incentives for collectors and recyclers to over-report the amount of collected e-waste in order to gain extra subsidies from the fund. Other policy measures such as the enforcement of pollution control regulations on informal recyclers, the prevention of smuggling, and the protection of intellectual property rights should accompany EPR policies.     

Analysis of recycling structures for e-waste in Vietnam

E-waste management in Vietnam poses real challenges such as the lack of specific e-waste legislation, the strong involvement of “craft villages” and the missing of monitoring data. Many issues (e.g., pollution level, generated waste, health of workers and resident living at recycling sites) lead to the limited access to these craft villages. Thus, there is no comprehensive picture on e-waste management in Vietnam available today. This research focuses on the current situation of e-waste management. Sources of e-waste, collection and treatment in Vietnam are investigated by utilizing most available sources of information (published journals, unpublished works from projects and reports from institutes, ministry) together with the interviewed data from experts, collectors, workers and especially, biggest traders in the field. Based on this information, the processes applied in Vietnam, both in the formal and informal sector, have been analyzed systematically in terms of inputs, outputs, potential emissions and related risks for workers. From these aspects, a comparison in terms of legal frameworks, collection and treatment at both formal and informal sector between Vietnam and other countries in Asian region was undertaken. Thus, major challenges of e-waste management and relatively comprehensive image of e-waste management and treatment in Vietnam have been identified.     

E-waste issues and measures in the Philippines

The continuous dependence on electronic equipment at home and in the workplace has given rise to a new environmental challenge: electronic waste. Electronic waste, or e-waste, refers to electronic products that no longer satisfy the needs of the initial purchaser. These can include a wide variety of goods, such as computers, cellular phones, TVs, refrigerators, air conditioners, washing machines, and video cameras. These pieces of equipment contain hazardous materials such as lead, beryllium, mercury, cadmium, and chromium that pose both an occupational and environmental health threat. Although electronic equipment is considered safe during use, the potential for release of the toxic constituents increases during storage or disposal. Because of the growing number of discarded electronic devices resulting from rapid product obsolescence, this type of waste is an emerging concern among developing countries. This study estimates the current and future quantity of e-waste in the Philippines, with a focus on televisions, refrigerators, air conditioners, washing machines, and radios. Data from the National Statistics Office (NSO) serve as the input to a simple end-of-life model for each type of electronic device. Mathematical equations are derived incorporating other factors, such as the number of electronic devices in use, current end-of-life management practices, serviceable years of the product, and disposal behavior of consumers. An accurate estimation of e-waste generation would be useful in policy making as well as in designing an effective management scheme to avoid the potential threats of health impacts or environmental pollution. Preliminary estimates show that at the end of 2005, approximately 2.7 million units became obsolete and about 1.8 million units required landfilling. Over a 10-year period from 1995 to 2005, approximately 25 million units became obsolete. An additional 14 million units are projected to become obsolete in the next 5 years.     

Informal electronic waste recycling: a sector review with special focus on China

Informal recycling is a new and expanding low cost recycling practice in managing Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE or e-waste). It occurs in many developing countries, including China, where current gaps in environmental management, high demand for second-hand electronic appliances and the norm of selling e-waste to individual collectors encourage the growth of a strong informal recycling sector. This paper gathers information on informal e-waste management, takes a look at its particular manifestations in China and identifies some of the main difficulties of the current Chinese approach. Informal e-waste recycling is not only associated with serious environmental and health impacts, but also the supply deficiency of formal recyclers and the safety problems of remanufactured electronic products. Experiences already show that simply prohibiting or competing with the informal collectors and informal recyclers is not an effective solution. New formal e-waste recycling systems should take existing informal sectors into account, and more policies need to be made to improve recycling rates, working conditions and the efficiency of involved informal players. A key issue for China’s e-waste management is how to set up incentives for informal recyclers so as to reduce improper recycling activities and to divert more e-waste flow into the formal recycling sector.     

The Best-of-2-Worlds philosophy: Developing local dismantling and global infrastructure network for sustainable e-waste treatment in emerging economies

E-waste is a complex waste category containing both hazardous and valuable substances. It demands for a cost-efficient treatment system which simultaneously liberates and refines target fractions in an environmentally sound way. In most developing countries there is a lack of systems covering all steps from disposal until final processing due to limited infrastructure and access to technologies and investment. This paper introduces the ‘Best-of-2-Worlds’ philosophy (Bo2W), which provides a network and pragmatic solution for e-waste treatment in emerging economies. It seeks technical and logistic integration of ‘best’ pre-processing in developing countries to manually dismantle e-waste and ‘best’ end-processing to treat hazardous and complex fractions in international state-of-the-art end-processing facilities. A series of dismantling trials was conducted on waste desktop computers, IT equipment, large and small household appliances, in order to compare the environmental and economic performances of the Bo2W philosophy with other conventional recycling scenarios. The assessment showed that the performance of the Bo2W scenario is more eco-efficient than mechanical separation scenarios and other local treatment solutions. For equipment containing substantial hazardous substances, it demands the assistance from domestic legislation for mandatory removal and safe handling of such fractions together with proper financing to cover the costs. Experience from Bo2W pilot projects in China and India highlighted key societal factors influencing successful implementation. These include market size, informal competitors, availability of national e-waste legislation, formal take-back systems, financing and trust between industrial players. The Bo2W philosophy can serve as a pragmatic and environmentally responsible transition before establishment of end-processing facilities in developing countries is made feasible. The executive models of Bo2W should be flexibly differentiated for various countries by adjusting to local conditions related to operational scale, level of centralized operations, dismantling depth, combination with mechanical processing and optimized logistics to international end-processors.     

The life cycle assessment of an e-waste treatment enterprise in China

Electrical and electronic waste (e-waste) has become one of the fastest growing waste streams in the world, and many countries have established e-waste treatment enterprises to solve their e-waste problems. In this study, a life cycle assessment (LCA) was undertaken to quantitatively investigate the environmental impacts of an e-waste treatment enterprise in China. The LCA is constructed by SimaPro software version 7.2 and expressed with the Eco-indicator 99 life cycle impact assessment method. For a sensitivity analysis of the overall LCA results, the so-called CML method is used in order to estimate the influence of the choice of the assessment method on the result. According to the survey data, discarded TV sets accounted for the highest proportion of e-waste treated in the enterprise in 2010. The e-waste treatment had little environmental impact, and at the same time large environmental benefits can be achieved mainly due to the recycled resources and reuse of some components. Based on the research results, it can be seen that recycled metal, especially copper, would be of more importance for environmental benefits. Relevant results and data from this study could provide decision support to enterprise managers and government sectors.     

Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) management in Korea: generation, collection, and recycling systems

In Korea, generation of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), or electronic waste (e-waste), has rapidly increased in recent years. The management of WEEE has become a major issue of concern for solid waste communities due to the volumes of waste being generated and the potential environmental impacts associated with the toxic chemicals found in most electronic devices. Special attention must be paid when dealing with WEEE because of toxic materials that it contains (e.g., heavy metals, polybrominated diphenyl ethers, phthalates, and polyvinyl chloride). If managed improperly, the disposal of WEEE can adversely affect the environment and human health. Environmental regulatory agencies; electronic equipment manufacturers, retailers, and recyclers; environmental nongovernmental organizations; and many others are much interested in updated statistics with regard to how much WEEE is generated, stored, recycled, and disposed of. In Korea, an extended producer responsibility policy was introduced in 2003 not only to reduce the amount of electronic products requiring disposal, but also to promote resource recovery from WEEE; the policy currently applies to a total of ten electrical and electronic product categories. This article presents an overview of the current recycling practices and management of electrical and electronic waste in Korea. Specifically, the generation rates, recycling systems and processes, and recent regulations of WEEE are discussed. We estimated that 1 263 000 refrigerators, 701 000 washing machines, 1 181 000 televisions, and 109 000 airconditioning units were retired and handled by the WEEE management system in 2006. More than 40% of the products were collected and recycled by producers. Four major producers’ recycling centers and other WEEE recycling facilities are currently in operation, and these process a large faction of WEEE for the recovery of valuable materials. Much attention should still be paid to pollution prevention and resource conservation with respect to WEEE. Several suggestions are made in order to deal with electronic waste management problems effectively and to prevent potential impacts.     

Collection and recycling of electronic scrap: a worldwide overview and comparison with the Brazilian situation

Recycling and the related issue of sustainable development are increasing in importance around the world. In Brazil, the new National Policy on Solid Wastes has prompted discussion on the future of electronic waste (e-waste). Over the last 10 years, different e-waste collection systems and recycling processes have been applied globally. This paper presents the systems used in different countries and compares the world situation to the current Brazilian reality. To establish a recycling process, it is necessary to organize efficient collection management. The main difficulty associated with the implementation of e-waste recycling processes in Brazil is the collection system, as its efficiency depends not only on the education and cooperation of the people but also on cooperation among industrial waste generators, distributors and the government. Over half a million waste pickers have been reported in Brazil and they are responsible for the success of metal scrap collection in the country. The country also has close to 2400 companies and cooperatives involved in recycling and scrap trading. On the other hand, the collection and recycling of e-waste is still incipient because e-wastes are not seen as valuable in the informal sector. The Brazilian challenge is therefore to organize a system of e-waste management including the informal sector without neglecting environmentally sound management principles.     

Regional or global WEEE recycling. Where to go?

If we consider Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) management, we can see the development of different positions in developed and developing countries. This development started with the movement of WEEE from developed countries to the developing countries. However, when the consequences for health and the environment were observed, some developing countries introduced a ban on the import of this kind of waste under the umbrella of the Basel Convention, while some developed countries have been considering a regional or global WEEE recycling approach. This paper explores the current movements between Source and Destination countries, or the importers and exporters, and examines whether it is legal and why illegal traffic is still rife; how global initiatives could support a global WEEE management scheme; the recycling characteristics of the source an destination countries and also to ascertain whether the principle of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) has been established between the different stakeholders involved in WEEE management.Ultimately, the Full Extended Producer Responsibility is presented as a possible solution because the compensation of the environmental capacity for WEEE recycling or treatment could be made by the contribution of extra responsibility; and also generating an uniform standard for processing WEEE in an environmentally sound manner could support the regional or international solution of WEEE and also improve the performance of the informal sector.     

Potential e-waste generated from households in Indonesia using material flow analysis

Waste of electronic and electrical equipment (e-waste) generated in Indonesia is expected to increase due to high growth of the Indonesian economy and fast development in technology. As Indonesia has not yet had specified criteria on e-waste, in this study, e-waste is defined as any obsolete or unwanted electronic and electrical equipment that is introduced into the recycling and disposal process. The objective of this study is to estimate the e-waste generated in Indonesian households using the method of material flow analysis. The amount of generated e-waste could be used for constructing an e-waste recycling management system in Indonesia. E-waste materials that need to be treated could be known. In this study, some types of equipment, such as television, washing machine, refrigerator, personal computer, and mobile phone, were chosen to be tracers. Using the modified material flow analysis model proposed by Steubing et al. (Waste Manage 30:473–482, 38), the potential e-waste that was generated from households was estimated. The total estimated accumulation of generated e-waste from households in 2015 and 2025 is about 285,000 and 622,000 tonnes, respectively. If a proper recycling system was in place, a new source for valuable materials recovery would be created, as well as protecting the environment and health.     

Processes in informal end-processing of e-waste generated from personal computers in Vietnam

Informal treatment of e-waste plays an important role in many countries which have no or weak formal waste management structures. One of the challenges for assessing informal e-waste recycling technologies is to identify their disadvantages and potential technology improvement. The analysis of informal recycling processes starts with a balance of input and output materials for each of the processes. Main obstacles are the fact that in most cases, mixed or variety materials serve as input and, secondly by nature, the informal sector does not systematically measure and monitor the process. This study presents the processes and available data for informal e-waste recycling of desktop personal computer as it consists of components made of plastic and many metals within the Vietnamese context. To identify the most relevant processes, critical flows and technology gap, two scenarios are compared: (1) current situation in which recycling activities are taken in recycling craft villages and (2) appropriately selected BAT. The selected materials from e-waste cover a wide range of recycling processes and technologies: Printed Circuit Board treatment, metal (ferrous metal, aluminum and copper) and plastic recycling.

     

Environmental contamination from electronic waste recycling at Guiyu, southeast China

The disposal, recycling, and part salvaging of discarded electronic devices such as computers, printers, televisions, and toys are now creating a new set of waste problems. This study is aimed at identifying the sources and quantifying the pollution levels generated from electronic waste (e-waste) activities at Guiyu, Guangdong Province, China, and their potential impacts on the environment and human health. The preliminary results indicate that total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in soil obtained from a printer roller dump site was 593 μg/kg dry weight (dry wt.) and in sediment from a duck pond, the PAH concentration was 514 μg/kg (dry wt.). Sediment from the Lianjiang River was found to be contaminated by polychlorinated biphenyls (743 μg/kg) at a level approaching three times the Canadian Environmental Quality Guidelines probable effect level of 277 μg/kg. Total mono- to hepta-brominated diphenyl ether homologue concentrations (1140 and 1169 μg/kg dry wt.) in soils near dumping sites were approximately 10–60 times those reported for other polybrominated diphenyl ether-contaminated locations in the world. In-house study on the open burning of cable wires showed extremely high levels of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans resulting in 12419 ng toxic equivalents (TEQ)/kg of waste input and 15 610 ng TEQ/kg for two separate tests, respectively, which were about three orders of magnitude higher than those for the open burning of household waste. High levels of Cu (712, 528, and 496 mg/kg), exceeding the new Dutch list action value, were determined for soil near the printer roller dumping area, sediment from Lianjiang River, and soil from a plastic burn site, respectively. A more thorough study is underway to elucidate the extent of contamination of toxic pollutants in different ecological compartments to establish whether these pollutants are bioaccumulated and biomagnified through food chains. Assessments of human health impacts from oral intake, inhalation, and dermal contact will be subsequently investigated. An erratum to this article is available at.     

Environmental effects of heavy metals derived from the e-waste recycling activities in China: A systematic review

As the world’s leading manufacturing country, China has become the largest dumping ground for e-waste, resulting in serious pollution of heavy metals in China. This study reviews recent studies on environmental effects of heavy metals from the e-waste recycling sites in China, especially Taizhou, Guiyu, and Longtang. The intensive uncontrolled processing of e-waste in China has resulted in the release of large amounts of heavy metals in the local environment, and caused high concentrations of metals to be present in the surrounding air, dust, soils, sediments and plants. Though the pollution of many heavy metals was investigated in the relevant researches, the four kinds of heavy metals (Cu, Pb, Cd and Cr) from e-waste recycling processes attracted more attention. The exceedance of various national and international standards imposed negative effects to the environment, which made the local residents face with the serious heavy metal exposure. In order to protect the environment and human health, there is an urgent need to control and monitor the informal e-waste recycling operations.     

Enhancing e-waste estimates: Improving data quality by multivariate Input–Output Analysis

Waste electrical and electronic equipment (or e-waste) is one of the fastest growing waste streams, which encompasses a wide and increasing spectrum of products. Accurate estimation of e-waste generation is difficult, mainly due to lack of high quality data referred to market and socio-economic dynamics. This paper addresses how to enhance e-waste estimates by providing techniques to increase data quality. An advanced, flexible and multivariate Input–Output Analysis (IOA) method is proposed. It links all three pillars in IOA (product sales, stock and lifespan profiles) to construct mathematical relationships between various data points. By applying this method, the data consolidation steps can generate more accurate time-series datasets from available data pool. This can consequently increase the reliability of e-waste estimates compared to the approach without data processing. A case study in the Netherlands is used to apply the advanced IOA model. As a result, for the first time ever, complete datasets of all three variables for estimating all types of e-waste have been obtained. The result of this study also demonstrates significant disparity between various estimation models, arising from the use of data under different conditions. It shows the importance of applying multivariate approach and multiple sources to improve data quality for modelling, specifically using appropriate time-varying lifespan parameters. Following the case study, a roadmap with a procedural guideline is provided to enhance e-waste estimation studies.     

A material flow analysis on current electrical and electronic waste disposal from Hong Kong households

A material flow study on five types of household electrical and electronic equipment, namely television, washing machine, air conditioner, refrigerator and personal computer (TWARC) was conducted to assist the Government of Hong Kong to establish an e-waste take-back system. This study is the first systematic attempt on identifying key TWARC waste disposal outlets and trade practices of key parties involved in Hong Kong. Results from two questionnaire surveys, on local households and private e-waste traders, were used to establish the material flow of household TWARC waste. The study revealed that the majority of obsolete TWARC were sold by households to private e-waste collectors and that the current e-waste collection network is efficient and popular with local households. However, about 65,000 tonnes/yr or 80% of household generated TWARC waste are being exported overseas by private e-waste traders, with some believed to be imported into developing countries where crude recycling methods are practiced. Should Hong Kong establish a formal recycling network with tight regulatory control on imports and exports, the potential risks of current e-waste recycling practices on e-waste recycling workers, local residents and the environment can be greatly reduced.