{"id":229158,"date":"2023-02-28T20:13:51","date_gmt":"2023-02-28T14:43:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.forumias.com\/?p=229158"},"modified":"2023-02-28T20:13:51","modified_gmt":"2023-02-28T14:43:51","slug":"unpacking-the-new-set-of-e-waste-rules","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/unpacking-the-new-set-of-e-waste-rules\/","title":{"rendered":"Unpacking the new set of e-waste rules"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Source<\/strong>– The post is based on the article \u201cUnpacking the new set of e-waste rules\u201d <\/strong>published in The Hindu <\/strong>on 28th February 2023<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Syllabus: <\/strong>GS3- Environment<\/p>\n

Relevance:<\/strong> Issues related to e-waste<\/p>\n

News-<\/strong> In November 2022, the Ministry of Environment and Forests further notified a new set of e-waste rules. These rules will come into force from April 1, 2023.<\/p>\n

What are some specifics about older rules related to e-waste?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The first set of e-waste Rules<\/strong> was notified in 2011 and came into effect in 2012. An important component of the Rules was the introduction of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

E-Waste rules 2016 were amended in 2018. These rules included provisions to promote \u2018authorisation\u2019 and \u2018product stewardship<\/strong>\u2019. Other categories of stakeholders such \u2018Producer Responsibility Organisations (PRO) <\/strong>were also introduced in these rules.<\/p>\n

What are issues with the new e-waste Rules of 2022?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. The new rules of 2022 in its EPR framework include the requirement of \u2018Registration of Stakeholders\u2019<\/strong>. But, many formal recyclers undertake activities only up to the pre-processing or segregation stage<\/strong>. After that, they channelise e-\u00adwaste to the informal sector.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The earlier rules placed importance on seeking authorisation<\/strong> by stakeholders. But, a weak monitoring system and a lack of transparency<\/strong> resulted in inadequate compliance.<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. A \u2018digitalized systems approach<\/strong>\u2019 has been introduced in the new rules. It may now address these challenges. Standardising the e -waste value chain<\/strong> through a common digital portal may ensure transparency.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      But, it is crucial to reduce the frequency of \u2018paper trading\u2019 or \u2018false trail<\/strong>\u2019. It is the practice of falsely revealing 100% collection on paper while collecting \u2018scrap\u2019 to meet targets.<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. Two important stages of \u2018efficient\u2019 e-\u00adwaste recycling are efficient recoveries of rare earth metals and safe disposal of the residual<\/strong> during e-\u00adwaste recycling.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        The rules briefly touch upon the two aspects. But, they do not clearly state the requirement for ensuring the \u2018recovery tangent\u2019.<\/p>\n

          \n
        1. The new notification does away with PRO and dismantlers and vests all the responsibility of recycling with authorised recyclers<\/strong>. This move seems to cause initial turbulence, where the informal channels may seek benefits.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          PROs acted as an intermediary between producers and formal recyclers<\/strong> by bidding for contracts from producers and arranging for \u2018certified and authorised\u2019 recycling<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

          The informal sector plays a crucial role<\/strong> in e-waste handling. 95% of e-\u00adwaste <\/strong>is channelised to the sector. But, it has given little recognition in the new rules.<\/p>\n

          The recycling is the last stage that poses a major concern where e waste is handed over to the informal recyclers. The rest of the stages do not involve any hazardous practices.<\/p>\n

          What are other challenges in recycling of e-waste?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

          Many producers have still not set up collection centres and some have labelled their head office located on the outskirts of the city as the \u2018only\u2019 collection point<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

          Formal companies are mainly clustered in the metropolises. They also fail to provide doorstep<\/strong><\/p>\n

          collection<\/strong> to consumers. The quantum of e-\u00adwaste is not enough to meet their overhead<\/p>\n

          expenses or transport.<\/p>\n

          consumers lack awareness and information <\/strong>about the existence of any such services.<\/p>\n

          What is the way forward for proper implementation of e-waste rules?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

          All stakeholders must have the right information and intent<\/strong> to safely dispose of e\u00adwaste.<\/p>\n

          There is a need for consistent efforts towards increasing consumer awareness, strengthening reverse logistics, building capacity of stakeholders, improving existing infrastructure, enhancing product designing, and adopting green procurement practices<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

          This should be supplemented by establishing a robust collection and recycling system<\/strong> on the ground.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          Source– The post is based on the article \u201cUnpacking the new set of e-waste rules\u201d published in The Hindu on 28th February 2023. Syllabus: GS3- Environment Relevance: Issues related to e-waste News- In November 2022, the Ministry of Environment and Forests further notified a new set of e-waste rules. These rules will come into force… Continue reading Unpacking the new set of e-waste rules<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10320,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1230,9],"tags":[216,10498],"class_list":["post-229158","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-9-pm-daily-articles","category-public","tag-gs-paper-3","tag-the-hindu","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","views":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229158","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10320"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=229158"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229158\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=229158"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=229158"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=229158"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}