Where is Mumbai's e-waste going?

Where is Mumbairsquos ewaste going Why is the cityrsquos electronic garbage ndash ranging from discarded phones electronic home appliances to computer parts ndash not making its way to the seven existing recycling plants in the city and instead polluting our already sullied environment On the occasion of World Environment Day MiD DAYrsquos investigations revealed that while only 20 per cent of the cityrsquos seven recycling plants are being used and 14 more plants are being planned the actual ewaste lies dumped across the city owing to apathy and lack of proper awareness about the hazards they expose the citizens to Science rules According to the central governmentrsquos ewaste rules which came into effect from May 1 consumers will now have to route their ewaste to recycling units for scientific dismantling and recycling File pic At present Mumbai generates around threelakh tonnes of ewaste every year Yeshwant Sontakke regional officer of the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board MPCB said ldquoWe have seven plants in place which have a capacity of approximately 10000 tonnes But the waste that we receive only accounts for 20 per cent of the capacity of these plants We have 14 more recycling units in the pipeline With the new law in place we are expecting matters to improve in the next few monthsrdquo According to the central governmentrsquos ewaste Management and Handling Rules which came into effect from May 1 consumers will now have to route their ewaste to recycling units for scientific dismantling and recycling This is to be executed through collection centres established by the product manufacturers ldquoWe have already instructed product manufacturers to set up collection centres where people can deposit electronic gadgets the lifecycle of which have ended MPCB has also directed these manufacturers to recycle unbranded electronic gadgets that may be brought in by consumers This will be accomplished in phases We will be conducting regular reviews of the samerdquo said Sontakke BK Soni chairman of the Eco Recycling Ltd Ecoreco said ldquoA strict implementation of the law is necessary to prevent this toxic waste from causing pollution At present ewaste recycling in Maharashtra is almost negligible We are hardly getting any ewaste Though the units are mushrooming in Mumbai the ewaste is not reaching the units The few units in the state are just doing the work of dismantling the productsrdquo Satish Sinha associate director of the organisation Toxic Links attributed the situation to poor awareness among the masses ldquoThough the law was framed in 2011 it was implemented only in 2012 Unfortunately not much work was done to educate the public The first thing that needs to be done is clear a channel between the manufactures and the consumers so that the consumers can easily reach there nearest store to drop their ewaste A helpline needs to be opened for the same About 80 per cent of our ewaste is passing through informal channelsrdquo said Sinha Ewaste scare lsquoRecycling ndashfrom ewaste to resourcesrsquo a report commissioned by the United Nations Environment Programme predicts that by 2020 Indiarsquos ewaste from old computers will jump 500 per cent from what it was in 2007 In the same period ewaste from mobile phones is forecasted to rise 18 times in India Old pen drives outdated TVs refrigerators music systems ndash name any electronic device and yoursquoll find that the hazardous substances they contain find their way back into your system According to Achim Steiner executive director of the United Nations Environment Program India may also face rising environmental damage and health problems if ewaste recycling is left to the vagaries of the unorganised sector Worse still most of these workers are children and women who are exposed to deadly toxins Did you know Mumbai generates around 3 lakh tonnes of ewaste every year EHazard How ewaste affects your health gtgt Lead Widely used in leadacid batteries cable sheathing printed circuit boards it can cause loss of appetite diarrhoea even comatose conditions after shortterm exposure Longterm exposure can affect kidneys damage nerves and cause blood and brain disorders gtgt Mercury Used in the production of electrical equipment and found concentrated in batteries switches thermostats and fluorescent lamps it can cause brain and liver damage gtgt Arsenic Used in circuit boards LCDs and computer chips it can cause skin diseases digestive problems and decrease nerve conduction velocityu00a0