Sustainable E-Waste Management: Challenges, Innovations, and Stakeholder Engagement
摘要
Developing a deep understanding of stakeholder behavior is critical for developing countries to ensure adequate e-waste collection, handling, and sorting. This chapter delves into the collection, sorting, and handling practices desirable for efficient e-waste management. Effective e-waste handling involves dismantling, separation and enrichment, energy and precious material recovery, and pollution alleviation. Recycling and collection in developing nations are undertaken mainly by the informal sector, which is dependent on intensive physical labor for various processes. State-run collection and public awareness programs are crucial in developing countries to encourage stakeholders to recycle e-waste properly. Extended producer responsibility initiatives fix the producer’s responsibility in ensuring the collection, recycling, and disposal of e-waste during its lifecycle. Artificial intelligence and Internet-of-Things can prove to be game-changers by efficiently revolutionizing the sorting, dismantling, and segregation of e-waste. These techniques can transform waste transportation from source to the recycling facility, effectively reducing costs by up to 28.22%. Incessant efforts are needed to safeguard the workforce involved in e-waste handling through training, health check-ups, and personal protection equipment. Key challenges include the overarching involvement of the informal sector, lack of training for the stakeholders, political commitment, and illegal transboundary movement of e-waste. Technology giant Apple contributes significantly to e-waste management by using recycled materials in its new products. Their efforts have led to 3 million MT of e-waste being redirected from landfills in 2023.