Space and Population Department, University of Cuenca, Cuenca, Ecuador.
Chair for Ecological Systems Design, Institute of Environmental Engineering (IfU), Zurich, Switzerland.
Waste Manag Res. 2023 Oct;41(10):1539-1548. doi: 10.1177/0734242X231165242. Epub 2023 Apr 20.
The rise of consumption patterns of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) and the generation of waste EEE (WEEE) has been strongly increasing globally. Recycling rates (RRs) are one of the main indicators for monitoring the progress towards a circular economy and establishing recovery and treatment schemes. For this reason, this study discusses the setting of recycling targets for WEEE in Ecuador, using mobile phones as a case study. Firstly, the generation of mobile phone waste from 2012 to 2018 is estimated based on literature review. The most appropriate model for estimating WEEE generation is selected according to the applicable market conditions, input requirements and available data. Then, the composition of a mobile phone is determined through an extensive literature review. Based on these results, the materials' environmental impact and potential economic value are approximated using the ReCiPe Endpoint (H, A) method and the prices of virgin materials, respectively. The estimation shows that in Ecuador an average of 2 million devices are discarded every year, which represents an interesting source of resources but currently does not have appropriate management. Ecuador has implemented regulatory frameworks in favour of the integral management of these wastes. However, mass-based collection targets still appear to be the only available measure. Therefore, national results on electronics recycling do not allow adequate monitoring of progress towards a circular economy and largely neglect environmental aspects and economic potential.
电气和电子设备（EEE）消费模式的兴起以及废弃电气和电子设备（WEEE）的产生在全球范围内呈强劲增长态势。回收率（RR）是监测向循环经济发展取得的进展和建立回收与处理计划的主要指标之一。出于这个原因，本研究以手机为例，讨论了为厄瓜多尔制定 WEEE 回收目标的问题。首先，根据文献回顾，估算了 2012 年至 2018 年手机废物的产生量。根据适用的市场条件、投入要求和可用数据，选择最适合的模型来估算 WEEE 的产生量。然后，通过广泛的文献回顾确定手机的组成。基于这些结果，使用 ReCiPe 终点（H，A）方法和原始材料的价格分别估算材料的环境影响和潜在经济价值。估计结果表明，厄瓜多尔每年平均有 200 万台设备被丢弃，这是一个有趣的资源来源，但目前还没有适当的管理。厄瓜多尔已经实施了有利于这些废物综合管理的监管框架。然而，基于质量的收集目标似乎仍然是唯一可用的措施。因此，电子废物回收方面的国家成果无法对向循环经济发展的进展进行充分监测，并且在很大程度上忽略了环境方面和经济潜力。
