Used electronics' flow to India poses environmental hazard

Used electronic items such as monitors, computers and mobile phones from the US end up in countries like India and China, where disposal practices are unsafe to workers and dangerous to the environment.

A new US Government Accountability Office (GAO) report reveals that these used electronic goods are dismantled under unsafe conditions — using methods like open-air incineration and acid baths — to extract metals such as copper and gold.

For instance, in a search of an Internet e-commerce site, GOA observed brokers from around the world place 2,234 requests to purchase liquid-crystal display (LCD) screens. On the same site, it found 430 requests for central processing units (CPUs) and 665 requests for used computers.

Moreover, in an extensive search of two Internet e-commerce sites over a three-month period, GAO observed that brokers in developing countries made 230 requests for about 7.5 million used cathode ray tubes (CRTs). These brokers represented over 60 per cent of all requests that GAO observed. Over 75 per cent of the brokers’ requests offered $10 (around Rs 460) or less per unit, and almost half offered $5 (around Rs 230) or less.

Low prices (under $10 per unit) indicate a high likelihood that these items will ultimately be handled and disposed of unsafely, notes the report. About 70 per cent of the requests came from developing countries in Asia, with India and China posting the largest number by far. The remaining requests came largely from Africa.

US hazardous waste regulations have not deterred exports of potentially hazardous used electronics, primarily since existing Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) norms focus only on CRTs, notes the GAO report. Other exported used electronics flow virtually unrestricted -- even to countries where they can be mismanaged -- in large part because relevant US hazardous waste regulations assess only how products will react in unlined US landfills.

Companies easily circumvent the CRT rule. GAO officials posed as foreign buyers of broken CRTs in India, Hong Kong, Pakistan and other countries, and 43 US companies expressed willingness to export these items. Some of the companies, including the ones that publically tout their exemplary environmental practices, were willing to export CRTs in apparent violation of the CRT rule. GAO provided EPA with the names of these companies on the latter’s request.

After importing these items, brokers, recyclers and refurbishment companies in some developing countries examine them to determine how they can be used most profitably. Reusable electronics, which can be directly resold or easily refurbished, generally have the highest value and are sold in retail shops in some developing countries.

For non-working or otherwise broken units, workers disassemble those that cannot be resold into their component parts, generally by hand. After disassembly, metals and plastics are recovered from the component parts, using methods that may lead to environmental pollution. Unsalvageable computer parts are often burned in open air.

EPA officials acknowledged compliance problems with the CRT rule, but said that given the rule’s relative newness, their focus was on educating the regulated community. The GAO report concludes that beyond enforcing the CRT rule, EPA can take steps to ensure that the larger universe of potentially harmful electronic devices -- such as computers, printers and cell phones -- are exported in a manner that does not harm health or the environment.