Consumer goods are reused much beyond what their manufacturers intend them to be in India, but there is always a point beyond which they just don’t work, and will have to be discarded. At this point, they are sold to scrap dealers, who salvage all that they can recover. To a layman, this may seem like a good example of recycling, but the fact is that what ensues is hazardous, both to the individuals who handle such goods as well as the environment in general.
Waste electrical and electronic equipment or e-waste, to use its popular abbreviation, comprises electronic and electrical devices which are surplus, obsolete, or broken. E-waste can have contaminants like lead, cadmium, beryllium and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which are pollutants that pose significant health hazards. E-waste may contain small amounts of precious metals such as gold, silver, palladium and copper, for which it is broken down. Greenpeace estimates that India generated almost four lakh tonnes of e-waste in 2007. Barely 3 per cent of it was recycled properly. India is still in the process of framing legislation that will make the 25-odd PC manufacturers and sellers who control about 75 per cent of the market implement a take-back policy for their end-consumers and recycle the same in an environment-friendly manner. The unorganised sector will also be required to comply with the law, but the buy-back proposal is not enough. While buyers must pay for the eventual disposal of the products they purchase, the government too must make provisions to recycle the waste and create proper facilities. This is not a problem that can be wished away. With the market for computers, entertainment device electronics, mobile phones, TVs, etc, expanding greatly, it is estimated that eight lakh tonnes of e-waste will be generated by 2012. The nation must take expeditious steps to deal with the problem, which, if unattended to, can pollute the environment and expose its most vulnerable citizens to hazards created by this toxic waste.
Source: The Tribune, Chandigarh, India.
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