4th ITU Green
Standards Week
Study on E-waste Generation and Flow in China
Jie Yang，,Jinhui LI
Basel Convention Regional
Centre for Asia and the Pacific
Tsinghua University
2014-09
Contents




Background
E-waste generation in China
E-waste collection and flow in China
Conclusion
E-waste generation worldwide
 Large discarded quantity and Rapid increase worldwide
E-waste generation in the world (Source: StEP 2013)
E-waste generation in countries with GDP in top 10
(source: StEP)
It is estimated that，worldwide 51 million tonnes of e-waste were discarded in
2012，more than 10% are generated in China.
E-waste generation worldwide
 Illegal transboundary of e-waste
 Due to high environmental management requirements and high processing
cost, illegal transboundary movement of e-waste from developed
countries to developing countries happens occasionally, China is one
of the main destination countries of illegal export of e-waste
Source, Banned Export WEEE
Source, Permitted Export WEEE
Source, Not legislation Export WEEE
Destination, Banned Import WEEE
Destination, Permitted Import WEEE
Destination, Not legislation Import WEEE
Known Routes from Sources to Destinations
Jinhui Li ⇑, Brenda N. Lopez.Regional or global WEEE recycling. Where to go? .Waste Management， 2013
Contents
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Background
E-waste generation in China
E-waste collection and flow in China
Conclusion
Main e-waste type in China
E-waste classification
Large household
appliances
Small household
appliances
IT and telecommunication
equipment
Consumer equipment
Main
generated ewaste
source
washing machines
Refrigerators
room air conditioners
etc.
Computers
E-products
producers
Residents
Printers and copiers
Lighting equipment
Electrical and electronic
tools
Toys, leisure and sports
equipment
Medical devices
Monitoring and control
instruments
Automatic dispensers
mobile phones
etc.
Televisions
Etc.
fluorescent lamp
Etc.
enterprises an
institutions
Illegal e-wast
import
E-waste generation in China
•
No official
statistic data
of e-waste
volume
•
Difference
among
estimation
results in
different
methods
•
1：Social ownership coefficient method
2：Market supply method
3：estimation model
4：Stanford method
4
4
2
2
4
3
3
2
3
4
1
1
Most are lack
of other ewaste volume
estimation
1:Y. He, X. Liao, and H. Tian, "China's scrap household appliance generation measurement methods
and result analysis," Appliance Technology, p. 2, 2010.
2: L. Li, Y. Liu, and Q. Wang, "National plan for recycling and disposal of waste electric and elelctronic
equipment," Research of Enivironmental Science vol. 22, p. 5, 2009.
3: J. Li, B. Tian, T. Liu, H. Liu, X. Wen, and S. i. Honda, "Status quo of e-waste management in
mainland China," Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management, vol. 8, pp. 13-20, 2006.
4: A. Veenstra, C. Wang, W. Fan, and Y. Ru, "An analysis of E-waste flows in China," The International
Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology, vol. 47, pp. 449-459, 2010.
E-waste generation in China
 Estimation of total e-waste volume
=∑Total volume of main e-waste types
=∑household appliances + Consumer equipment+ IT and
telecommunication equipment + Lighting equipment
=∑Total volume of representative products of each
main e-waste types
=∑(washing machines + Refrigerators + room air
conditioners)+ (Televisions)+(Computers + Printers
and copiers + mobile phones)+ (fluorescent lamp)
E-waste generation in China
 Large production and ownership of the main five traditional e-products
(televisions, washing machines, refrigerators, room air conditioners,
computer)
1) Production: from ca.100 million
units in 2001 to ca. 780 million
units in 2012;
2) Social ownership: over 1.8 billion
units in 2012 (social ownership of
residents accounts for 90%)
•
Rapid increase of computer
production
•
Stable increase of production
of air conditioner,
refrigerator and washing
machine
•
Relative slow-growth of
televisions
E-waste generation in China
 large and rapid increased generation of the main five major e-waste
Generation of the five main e-waste（in 10000 units and million tonnes)
Generation of the five main e-waste was estimated to be 150 million
units, namely ca. 4.5 million tonnes in 2013, and would reach to 10
million tonnes in 2020
E-waste generation in China
 Generation of offices equipment (e.g. printers and copiers)
Rapid production volume of printers: from ca. 18 million units in 2001 to 70.6 billion units in
2012.
Large and increased generation volume of waste printers: from ca. 20 million units in 2010 to
ca. 39 million units (ca. 390 thousand tonnes) in 2013, which would keep growing in the future,
but the speed will slow down gradually
Volume of waste copiers is ca. 1-2% of waste printers.
E-waste generation in China
 Generation of waste mobile phones
Rapid production volume of mobile phones: from ca. 80 million units in 2001
to 1.46 billion units in 2013.
Large and rapid increased generation volume of waste mobile phones: from 83
million units in 2010 to ca. 230 million units (ca. 28 thousand tonnes) in
2013, which would keep growing in the future, but the speed will slow down
gradually
E-waste generation in China
 Generation of waste fluorescent lamp
Distribution of waste generation
It is estimated that in 2013, total waste fluorescent is about 3.44 billion units,
total weight is about 519 thousand tonnes; Which will reach 5.84 billion units, and
total weight with about 937 thousand tonnes.in 2020
Guangdong，Jiangsu, Shandong, Zhejiang, and Sichuan are the top five waste-FLgenerating provinces in China. （Quanyin Tan; Jinhui Li. A study of waste fluorescent
lamp generation in mainland China. Journal of Cleaner Production， 2014）
E-waste generation in China
 Large discarded quantity and Rapid
increase of e-waste lead to environmental
pressure
 The total weight of the main
generated e-waste reached ca. 5.52
million tonnes in 2013.
 Pressure of the illegal tranboundary of
e-waste
From Jan. to Oct. 2013, China
customs seized 10 cases of ewaste smuggling, with a total
of more than 1500 tonnes.
Mostly are waste lead-acid
batteries, waste printed
circuit board, waste computer
equipment and office products
etc., mainly from Hong Kong,
Vietnam, myanmar, Mongolia and
other places, but the origin
countries of waste are unknown.
In early 2014, the customs
seized the largest e-waste
smuggling since "hedge" special
action , with 185container and
total of more than 200 tonnes.
It find out that since 2013 the
smuggling gang smuggled more
Contents
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Background
E-waste generation in China
E-waste collection and flow in China
Conclusion
E-waste collection in China
Before
Community
collection
network of the
MOC
“Old for New “
activities
Individual
collector
Second-hand
market
Repair store
Retailer
producer
The Regulation for the
Administration of
Recycling and
Treatment of Waste
Electrical and
Electronic Equipment
（2009）(Chinese WEEE)
Administrative
measures for
Collection Management
of WEEE (2012)
Regulated multicollection
channels
Records
management of
collection
Treatment
enterprise
Institutions
& Enterprises
MOC
collection
network
Pilot Base of
Urban Mining
Multi-collection channel
Construction of
renewable resources
collection system of
Ministry of Commerce
(2006)
“Old for New "Policy
of household
appliance(2009-2011)
Market
spontaneous
E-waste collection in China
E-waste flow in China
Fund subsidy
Main influence factors
 Policy, e.g. fund
subsidy
 ……
reusabilit
y
TV
85 yuan/unit
low
low
Refrigerator
80 yuan/unit
medium
low
Washing machine
35 yuan/unit
medium
low
Air conditioner
35 yuan/unit
high
medium
Computer
85 yuan/unit
high
high
Printer and
copier
no
medium
low
Mobile phone
no
high
high
fluorescent lamp
no
low
low
Others
no
 Economy, e.g. treatment
cost and profit
 Product
characteristics, e.g.
resource value and
reusability
resource
value
E-waste flow in China
Waste Televisions :
•
Formal and informal collection channels coexist: mainly come from household,
which were mainly collected by individual collectors, second-hand market,
retailers and treatment enterprises etc.
•
High recycling rate: High fund subsidy and low resource value and reusability
make television relative easy to collect. In 2013, ca. 89% waste TVs flowed into
qualified e-waste enterprises for dismantling and recycling, ca. 11% waste TVs
flowed into second market or workshops.
Individual
collector
Second market for reuse
Second-hand market
Workshops for dismantling
Televisions
(43.79 million units)
retailers
MOC collection network
Pilot Base of Urban Mining
Qualified treatment
enterprises for
dismantling（38.95
million units（89%）
）
E-waste flow in China
Waste washing machines, refrigerators, room air conditioners:
•
•
Formal and informal collection channels coexist: mainly come from
household, which were mainly collected by individual collectors,
second-hand market, retailers and treatment enterprises etc.
Low recycling rate: In 2013, ca. 10.5% Washing machines, 4%
Refrigerators, and 0.018% air conditioners flowed into qualified ewaste enterprises for dismantling and recycling, most flowed into
second market or workshops.
Second
Individual
market for
collector
Washing
reuse
machines
Second-hand market
(16.03 million
Workshops
units)
retaile
for
Refrigerators
rs
dismantling
(14.69 million
units)
Qualified treatment
room air
enterprises for
conditioners
MOC collection network
dismantling(Washing machines
(28.32 million
1.69 million units/10.5%);
units)
Pilot Base of Urban MiningRefrigerators 0.6 million
E-waste flow in China
Waste computers :
•
Formal and informal collection channels coexist: mainly come from household and
offices, which were collected by individual collectors, second-hand market,
Institutions & Enterprises, retailers and treatment enterprises etc.
•
Low recycling rate: high resource value and reusability make computer difficult to
collect. In 2013, ca. 2% waste computers flowed into qualified e-waste enterprises
for dismantling and recycling, most flowed into second market or workshops.
Individual collector
Second market for reuse
Second-hand market
Computers
(50.79 million units)
retailers
Workshops for
dismantling
Institutions & Enterprises
MOC collection network
Pilot Base of Urban Mining
Qualified treatment
enterprises for
dismantling（1.1
million units（2%））
E-waste flow in China
Waste mobile phones:
•
•
•
•
Formal and informal collection channels coexist: mainly come from
consumers, which were collected mainly by individual collectors,
second-hand market, retailers and operators, treatment enterprises
etc.
High proportion for leave unused or donate for reuse
High reuse rate: 34%-27%
Low recycling rate: only 5% flowed into qualified e-waste
52%
Le a ve unuse
d
enterprises
for dismantling and recycling,
others
flowed into second
Most used mobile phones are
21%
market or workshops.
Do na te
transported in Guangdong
5%
Wa ste
m o b ile
p ho ne
（ 230
m illio n
units
A b a nd o n
34%-27%
Re use
6%
Ind ivid ua l
c o lle c to r
8%
Pro d uc e r, re ta ile r
a nd o p e ra to r
6%
Re p a ire r,se c o n
d a ry m a rke t
1%
Fo rm a l c o lle c to r a nd
tre a tm e nt e nte rp rise s
1%
o the rs
provinces like Shenzhen for
refurbishment
5% Q ua lifie d tre a tm e nt
e nte rp rise s
C o lle c tio n
14%-21%
9%-16%
w o rksho p
E-waste flow in China
Waste printers:
•
•
•
•
Formal and informal collection channels coexist: mainly come from
office areas, which were collected mainly by individual collectors,
second-hand market, producers and retailers, treatment enterprises
etc.
High proportion of temporary stored waste printers: more than 50%
High remanufacturing of waste drum/ink cartridges
Low collection rate by formal treatment enterprises: ca.15% flowed
into qualified e-waste enterprises for dismantling and recycling,
others flowed into second market or workshops.
54%
temporary stored
individual
30% collector, secondWaste
printer
(38.93
million
units)
10%
hand market
5%
10%
1%
Producer,
retailer
Treatment
enterprises
Others
Reuse
80-90%
dismant
ling
36%
Drum/ink
cartridges
Remanufactu
ring
discard
Landfill
E-waste flow in China
waste fluorescent lamp:
•
•
At present, only some recycling pilot in institutions and the communities are
conducted in a few cities such as Beijing, Tianjin, Nanning, Changsha. For
example, Beijing Eco-island Science and Technology co., LTD. collected 3.67
million Waste fluorescent in 2012, only ca. 0.1% of total waste amount.
Treated with household waste: Most waste fluorescent tubes are discarded with
household waste, and flow to Household waste disposal facilities
Discard
waste fluorescent lamp
(3.44 billion units)
Collection pilot
Household waste
disposal facilities
Hazardous waste
facilities （ca.1%
）
E-waste flow in China
Other e-waste:
•
•
Informal collection channels : as waste e-scrap collected by waste scrap
collector, second-hand market etc. ; Small E-waste with low value would be
discarded with household waste; Some e-waste with medium resource value
would be sold to scrap collector, some with medium reusability would be
sold to second-hand market
Dismantling by individuals or workshops for metal and plastics.
Discard
Other e-waste
Sold as waste
scrap
Individual
collector
Second-hand
market
Second market
for reuse
Workshops for
dismantling
E-waste flow in China
Main flow direction:
•
•
•
Formal treatment enterprises
Secondhand market for reuse as whole machine or components
Informal workshop
Comsumer
10%
Temporary
storage
24%
Formal collector
and dealer
51%
Illegal
import
15%
Secondhand
market
Refurbishment
40%
Informal
collector
60%
Reuse of
components
Hazardous waste
Metals，plastics etc.
Enterprises with HW
management license
Downstream processing
enterprises
Manual
Dismantling
Residuals
5%
Discard or
landfill
E-waste flow in China
As of Sep. 2014, 106
qualified enterprises have
been authorized to be funded,
total treatment ability
exceed 100 million units
WEEE per year.
According to the
certificated dismantled
amount of WEEE in the first
and second quarter of 2013,
most formally collected WEEE
mainly flowed in Jiangsu,
Zhejiang, shanghai, Sichuan,
Hubei, Tianjin provinces for
dismantling.
E-waste flow in China
 Only few enterprises have mobile phone
disassembly line, e.g. Shanghai Weixiang
 Only few enterprises have printers
disassembly line ,e.g. Fuji Xerox
(Suzhou)and Canon（Dalian）are 2
enterprises specially for printers
collection and recycling
 Only 4 enterprises have the fluorescent
lamp treatment permit, ca. 16100 tonnes
 Main disassemble components e.g. CRT glass
are sent to Tianjin Renxin
 Waste plastics processing are mainly
concentrated in Hebei, Shandong, Jiangsu,
Zhejiang, Guangdong etc. provinces
There are ca. more than 80 enterprises with
PCBs treatment permit, which mainly located
in Jiangsu, Zhejiang province and Shanghai
City, of which ca. 16 enterprises are WEEE
enterprises with WEEE treatment permit
Contents




Background
E-waste generation in China
E-waste collection and flow in China
Conclusion
Conclusion
 Concerning the main 8 representative types e-waste, the total weight was estimated to
be ca. 5.52 million tonnes in 2013. Besides, the amont of illegal import of e-waste
could reach hundreds of thousands tonnes. Except the traditional e-waste （televisions,
washing machines , refrigerators, room air conditioners, and computers), the waste
generation volume such as printers, fluorescent lamp have significant percent of 7%
and 9%.
 E-waste secondhand market and workshops are still popular in China. In 2013, only ca.
24% e-waste flowed into formal sector, and ca. 35% e-waste directly or after
refurbishment flowed into second market, and ca. 30% were directly dismantled by
workshops.
 Under the fund subsidy, the collection system of television is relative mature, with
ca. 89% flowed into formal treatment enterprises. But facing e-waste with high or
medium resource value e.g. air conditioner, computer, refrigerator, and washing
machine, the subsidy with the principle of compensation of the environmental cost can
not lead these e-waste products to flow into qualified treatment companies. Besides
Massive secondhand market in China lead also to the difficulty to collect e-waste with
high reusability such as computers, mobile phones etc.
 In the first and second quarter of 2013， most formally collected WEEE mainly flowed
in Jisangsu, Zhejiang, shanghai, Sichuan, Hubei, Tianjing provinces for dismantling.
New treatment enterprises which got the fund qualifications would increase the
collection competition
4th
ITU Green
Standards Week
Thank you
The 9th
International Conference on
Waste Management and Technology
October 29-31, 2014 Beijing, China
http://2014.icwmt.org
Dr. Chen Yuan Ms. Wang Jiecong
Basel Convention Regional Centre for Asia and the Pacific,
School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China,
E-mail: icwmt@tsinghua.edu.cn