Sustainable management of electronic waste (e-waste)

Electronic waste or e-waste is one of the fastest growing areas of the international waste stream and is increasing at a much higher rate than all other waste streams. Fast growing electronics industries arising from the demands of information and communication technologies around the world coupled with the rapid product obsolescence and lack of end-of-life management options, have all led to the unsustainable management of the waste stream. Computers are manufactured from over 1,000 materials, many of which are toxic, and they contribute significantly to the e-waste stream, which is estimated to be ca. 20 to 50 million tonnes annually. Design for environment cleaner production, extended producer responsibility, standards and labeling, product stewardship, recycling and remanufacturing are some of the practices adopted by various countries around the world to deal with the e-waste stream. An over-view of these practices is presented and the manner in which they contribute to the sustainable management of e-waste is discussed.