Solutions: Towards Sustainable ICT Supply Chains
Greening the ICT reverse supply chain
Dr. Mathias Schluep, Empa
ITU Green Standards Week, 18 September 2012, Paris / France
Main objectives
Distribution & Consumption
Access
Collection
100%
Pre-Processing
End-Processing
recovery of
resources/
segregation of
hazardous waste
Disposal
Safe
Main actors
Distribution & Consumption
Collection
Pre-Processing
End-Processing
Disposal
Global
Industry
Distributors
& retailers
of new EEE
Second-hand
industry
Distributors
& retailers
of used EEE
Refurbishers
& Repairers
Institutional &
corporate
consumer
Communal
collection
Formal
recycling
industry
Official
dumpsites
Donations
Informal sector
Private
consumer
Informal
collectors /
scrap
dealers
Informal
recycling
Informal
dumping &
burning
Unwanted processes (examples)
Distribution & Consumption
Import of eDistributors
waste
and near
& retailers
end
of life EEE
of new EEE
Second-hand
industry
1 Distributors
& retailers
of used EEE
Refurbishers
& Repairers
Collection
Pre-Processing
End-Processing
Disposal
Global
Industry
Institutional &
corporate
consumer
Communal
collection
Consumer dumps
e-waste with
Donations
household
waste
Informal
collectors /
scrap
dealers
Private
consumer
2
Formal
recycling
industry
Secondary
resources are
not recovered
Under harmful
conditions
Informal sector
Informal
recycling
3
Official
dumpsites
4
Emissions to the
environment
Informal
dumping &
burning
5
Intervention mechanisms
Distribution & Consumption
Collection
Pre-Processing
Marketing & Awareness
Distributors
& retailers
of new EEE
Second-hand
industry
Distributors
& retailers
of used EEE
Refurbishers
& Repairers
Policy & Legislation
Institutional &
corporate
consumer
End-Processing
Disposal
Global
Industry
Communal
collection
Official
dumpsites
Formal
recycling
industry
Donations
Informal sector
Private
consumer
Informal
collectors /
scrap
dealers
Business & Finance
Informal
recycling
Technology & Skills
Informal
dumping &
burning
Monitoring and Control
Policy & Legislation
 Developing a legal framework …
 … in synergy with existing policies and legal frameworks, especially
related to environment, general waste management, as well as
health and safety
 … to ensure that all actors will play under the same rules, in order
to avoid ‘’cherry picking’’ (level playing field)
 … by defining appropriate roles and responsibilities
Policy & Legislation
 Example: Swiss WEEE legislation (ORDEE)
Consumer
Obligation to return
Obligation to take back
Retailer/
Manufacturer/
Importer
Obligation to dispose of
Recycler
Guarantee best disposal
Exporter
proof legal disposal
• but free of charge!
• return it to a retailer, manufacturer /
importer or to a collection point
• appliances they normally stock,
manufacture or import
• retailers may return it to manufacturer or
importer
• dispose of via own or existing PRO's system
• license granted by cantonal authorities
• control by PRO and cantonal authorities
• export permit granted by Federal Office of
the Environment (FOEN)
Business & Finance
 Establishing an institutional framework and a financing scheme
…
 … (e.g.) under the principle of Extended Producer Responsibility
(EPR), where producers and importers should be given an
appropriate role to manage the waste generated out of their
products
 … to ensure that the right market incentives lead to high collection
and material recovery rates.
 … to ensure that recycling is a sustainable business, also under
unfavorable economic conditions
 … by providing an additional flexible income stream (in addition to
revenues through sold secondary materials) enabled through a
financing scheme
Business & Finance
 The dependency on global commodity prices has to be
interpreted as a relevant risk for the business’ profitability
Technology & Skills
 developing a qualified and efficient e-waste recycling sector …
 … with careful consideration of the socio-economic conditions
(e.g. low labor costs) and the possible roles of informal collection
and dismantling before establishing a parallel system in
competition to these structures
 … to ensure an efficient and effective recycling chain with high
value for people and the environment
 … by identifying downstream processes for hazardous and
valuable fractions , including interlinking the local recyclers to
international recycling companies and networks, for developing
market outlets for their pre-processed e-waste fractions
Technology & Skills
Material recovery efficiency
Distribution & Consumption
Collection
Pre-Processing
End-Processing
Disposal
 The material recovery efficiency of the entire recycling chain
depends on the efficiency of each step and on how well the
interfaces between these interdependent steps are managed
System
Formal
e.g. Europe
Informal
e.g. India
Net yield
60%
formal
take-back
system
25%
mainly
mechanical
processes
95%
integrated
smelter
15%
80%
individual
collectors
50%
manual
sorting and
dismantling
50%
backyard
leaching
20%
Technology & Skills
Example gold recovery
 Informal sector Bangalore




only  20% gets recovered
> 60% loss due to the manual dismantling
process
> 50 % loss due to the wet-chemical
leaching process
Emissions are dramatic: up to 400x
European thresholds
 State of the art smelter



Recovery rate of up to 95%
Plus other metal, e.g. palladium, silver,
copper etc,
High – tech off-gas control and treatment
system
Technology & Skills
BET / BEP reference documents
 Some reference documents for best available technologies (BAT)
and best environmental practices (BEP)
Computing Equipment
•
PACE, “Guideline on environmentally sound material recovery and recycling
of end-of-life computing equipment,” Partnership for Action on Computing
Equipment, Geneva / Switzerland, 2011.
•
M. Schluep, C. Hagelueken, R. Kuehr, F. Magalini, C. Maurer, C. Meskers, E.
Mueller, and F. Wang, “Recycling - from e-waste to resources, Sustainable
innovation and technology transfer industrial sector studies,” United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP), Paris, France, 2009
UNEP, “Metal Recycling - Opportunities, Limits, Infrastructure,” United
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Paris / France, Draft #3, 2012
(all fractions)
Metals
•
•
Pyrometallurgical
Hydrometallurgical
•
Plastics
•
Stockholm Convention, “Guidelines on Best Available Techniques and Best
Environmental Practice for the Recycling and Disposal of Articles containing
Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) under the Stockholm Convention on
Persistent Organic Pollutants,” UNEP, UNIDO, unitar, Vienna, Austria, draft v1
2011.
Batteries
•
ERM, “Battery Waste Management - Life Cycle Assessment,” UK Department
for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), London, UK, 2006.
Monitoring & Control
 ensuring a continuous improvement and maintaining
compliance of the e-waste sector …
 … by implementing monitoring and control mechanisms which
favour high standard operations and allow businesses to grow in a
level playing field
Conclusion
 Greening the ICT reverse supply chain requires to:
 … understand the main objectives of e-waste recycling
 … know who the main actors are in the reverse supply chain
 … define what intervention mechanisms are needed for
 developing a legal framework
 establishing an institutional framework and a financing scheme
 developing a qualified and efficient e-waste recycling sector
 ensuring a continuous improvement and maintaining compliance of
the e-waste sector
Thank you!
Dr. Mathias Schluep
Empa
Lerchenfeldstrasse 5
9014 St.Gallen
SWITZERLAND
mathias.schluep@empa.ch
Technology & Society Lab:
www.empa.ch/tsl
Swiss e-Wast Programme:
www.ewasteguide.info
Swiss e-Waste Competence
www.e-waste.ch
GeSI & StEP E-waste Academy