Dutta Deblina, Goel Sudha
School of Environmental Science & Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Kharagpur 721302, India.
School of Environmental Science & Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Kharagpur 721302, India; Civil Engineering Department, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Kharagpur 721302, India.
Waste Manag. 2021 Apr 15;125:163-171. doi: 10.1016/j.wasman.2021.02.045. Epub 2021 Mar 8.
Nowadays, old electrical and electronic gadgets are being replaced constantly by newer versions resulting in huge amounts of waste electronic and electrical products that are collectively termed e-waste. It is estimated that 95% of e-waste recycling in India is done by the informal sector at the cost of their health and the environment. Very little data and no descriptions of recycling processes in the formal sector in India were available in the literature. The objective of this study was to evaluate the status of formal and informal e-waste recycling facilities in India. Seven authorized e-waste handling facilities in West Bengal, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Delhi were visited and most were involved in dismantling work only. In all cases, metals, plastic and glass are recovered from e-waste in compliance with environmental legislation. Challenges faced by the formal sector include lack of awareness among people and very few collection centers throughout the country. Quantification of e-waste generated in India was difficult as imported second-hand electrical and electronic gadgets cannot be separated for electronic waste. There is no mechanism for collecting data regarding e-waste generation in the states or at the Central government level. It is likely that published estimates are based on the indigenous production and import of electrical and electronic goods. The current installed e-waste handling capacity of 11 × 10 tons/year of e-waste in the country is woefully inadequate and needs to be enhanced as the minimum requirement is estimated to be 22 × 10 tons/year of e-waste.
如今，旧的电子电器产品正不断被更新版本所取代，产生了大量废弃电子电器产品，这些产品统称为电子垃圾。据估计，印度95%的电子垃圾回收是由非正规部门进行的，这是以牺牲他们的健康和环境为代价的。文献中几乎没有关于印度正规部门回收过程的数据和描述。本研究的目的是评估印度正规和非正规电子垃圾回收设施的现状。对西孟加拉邦、马哈拉施特拉邦、卡纳塔克邦和德里的七个授权电子垃圾处理设施进行了走访，发现大多数设施仅从事拆解工作。在所有情况下，金属、塑料和玻璃都是按照环境法规从电子垃圾中回收的。正规部门面临的挑战包括民众意识淡薄以及全国范围内的回收中心极少。由于无法将进口的二手电子电器产品分离出来作为电子垃圾，因此很难对印度产生的电子垃圾进行量化。在邦一级或中央政府层面，没有收集电子垃圾产生数据的机制。公布的估计数据很可能是基于电子电器产品的本土生产和进口情况。该国目前11×10吨/年的电子垃圾处理能力严重不足，由于估计最低需求为22×10吨/年的电子垃圾处理量，因此需要提高。
