Waste bites back

Says P Bineesha, chief environmental advisor with GTZ (German Technical Cooperation), which advises the state on management of hazardous waste: ‘‘Ten years ago when the problem started it was on a much smaller scale since electronics were not discarded quickly. However, now with so much advancement, electronics —both household and industrial— become obsolete very quickly and lead to the huge disposals every year.’’ GTZ is also the nation-wide nodal agency for e-waste management and provides technical know-how and funding. It is now tasked with putting together a draft legislation on e-waste management for the country for the Ministry of Environment and Forests.

Bineesha adds, ‘‘The magnitude of the hazards electronic waste causes to the environment and our health is very high. Toxins found in electronics such as computers, mobiles and cables can lead to cancer, birth defects, even collapse of the central nervous system. The process of recycling this waste causes a lot of toxins to be released into the environment.’’

The problem has become more challenging with Bangalore growing as an IT hub over the years. There naturally is tremendous support from the industry, say officials.

Metals such as platinum, gold and copper are extracted from the waste. However, only 100 small units run by families in and around Bangalore deal with the re-cycling in the absence of any formal sector involved. ‘‘These people are not aware of the health hazard this entails. They knead mercury with bare hands and use very crude methods to extract the metals,’’ says G V Ravindra, a social scientist working with recycling units to create awareness.

These families earn Rs 2,000-4,000 per day selling the metals that they recover and are, therefore, more rigid about entering a more formal system. Many experts say that India generates $1.5 billion worth of e-waste annually, with around 1,500 tonnes of electronic scrap dumped by manufacturers and assemblers. Also a large number of second-hand computers from the West get dumped in India, most of it via the grey market operators. ‘‘The mandatory requirements in the legislation that we have recommended are formal authorisation by the pollution control board and different guidelines and technical procedures that are environmentally safe,’’ says Bineesha.

The first formal recycling unit has been set up in Bangalore as a part of this initiative and many other cities across the country are in the process of emulating this system. ‘‘After Bangalore, Delhi is the next city which needs a formalised e-waste management. Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata are the others,’’ says Bineesha.

While Europe has the best legislations in e-waste management and the US has none, it is China that has laws India could borrow a lot from, say officials.