[Answered] India’s battery waste management lacks effective Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) floor pricing. Examine how implementing fair EPR can bridge this gap, promoting circular economy principles and environmental sustainability.

Introduction

With India’s push towards decarbonization and electrification, lithium-ion battery usage is surging. Yet, without robust Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) pricing, battery waste risks becoming a major environmental and economic hazard.

1. The Growing Challenge of Battery Waste in India: India’s lithium battery demand is projected to rise from 4 GWh in 2023 to 139 GWh by 2035 due to electric vehicles (EVs) and renewable energy adoption. However, battery waste is rising rapidly too, in 2022, lithium batteries contributed 700,000 tonnes to India’s 1.6 million tonnes of e-waste. Improper disposal leads to soil and water contamination, fires, and air pollution due to hazardous components like lithium, cobalt, and nickel.
2. Battery Waste Management Rules (2022) and the EPR Mandate: The Battery Waste Management Rules (BWMR) introduced EPR, making producers responsible for collection and recycling. Key components of EPR: Collection targets for producers. EPR certificates issued by recyclers for verification. Use of EPR floor pricing to ensure recyclers are fairly compensated.

3. Why Fair EPR Floor Pricing Matter?

The current EPR floor price under consideration is unviably low—less than one-fourth of the UK’s ₹600/kg for EV batteries—even after adjusting for purchasing power parity. Consequences of inadequate floor pricing: Disincentivises legitimate recyclers who incur high costs for safe dismantling, labour, and tech. Encourages informal or fraudulent recycling, where waste is improperly dumped, leading to health and ecological risks. Weakens material recovery—India could lose over $1 billion in foreign exchange by 2030 due to poor recycling of rare materials like cobalt and lithium.

4. Promoting Circular Economy Through Strong EPR: A fair EPR pricing mechanism can: Close the loop in the battery lifecycle. Ensure economic viability of formal recycling enterprises. Reduce import dependence on critical minerals. Align with Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production).
5. Global Best Practices: EU’s Battery Regulation (2023) mandates battery design for recyclability and minimum recycled content. South Korea integrates informal recyclers into formal channels via training and financial support.
6. Strengthening Enforcement and Integrating Informal Sector: Digitisation of EPR tracking and third-party audits can prevent fake certificate issuance. Penalties for non-compliance must be effectively enforced. Integrate informal recyclers (who currently dominate e-waste) via training, certification, and financial incentives. Example: Swachh Bharat Mission successfully included informal waste-pickers into municipal frameworks. Promote public-private partnerships (PPPs) to build localised battery recycling hubs.
7. Addressing Cost Concerns: Raising EPR prices won’t burden consumers: Global lithium and cobalt prices have fallen, but cost reductions haven’t reached end-users. Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) have the margin to absorb increased recycling costs, especially large multinational producers.

Conclusion

A robust EPR floor pricing mechanism is crucial for effective battery waste management. It can power India’s transition to a circular economy while ensuring environmental safety, resource security, and green growth.