Solutions: Towards Sustainable ICT Supply Chains Greening the ICT reverse supply chainDr. Mathias Schluep, EmpaITU Green Standards Week, 18 September 2012, Paris / France

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

Main objectivesDistribution & ConsumptionCollection Pre-Processing End-ProcessingDisposalAccess100%recovery of resources/ segregation of hazardous wasteSafe

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

Main actors

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

Unwanted processes (examples)

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

Intervention mechanismsPolicy & LegislationBusiness & FinanceTechnology & SkillsMarketing & AwarenessMonitoring and Control

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

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 responsibilitiesPolicy & Legislation

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

Policy & LegislationExample: Swiss WEEE legislation (ORDEE)Obligation to returnObligation to take backObligation to dispose ofGuarantee best disposalproof legal disposalConsumerRetailer/ Manufacturer/ Importerbut free of charge!return it to a retailer, manufacturer / importer or to a collection point appliances they normally stock, manufacture or importretailers may return it to manufacturer or importerdispose of via own or existing PRO's systemlicense granted by cantonal authoritiescontrol by PRO and cantonal authoritiesRecyclerexport permit granted by Federal Office of the Environment (FOEN)Exporter

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

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 schemeBusiness & Finance

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

The dependency on global commodity prices has to be interpreted as a relevant risk for the business profitabilityBusiness & Finance

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

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 fractionsTechnology & Skills

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

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 managedTechnology & SkillsMaterial recovery efficiencyDistribution & ConsumptionDisposalCollection Pre-Processing End-Processing

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

Informal sector Bangalore

Technology & SkillsExample gold recoveryState of the art smelter

only 20% gets recovered> 60% loss due to the manual dismantling process> 50 % loss due to the wet-chemical leaching processEmissions are dramatic: up to 400x European thresholdsRecovery rate of up to 95%Plus other metal, e.g. palladium, silver, copper etc, High tech off-gas control and treatment system

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

Technology & SkillsInitial recycling steps Pre-ProcessingSource: PACE, Guideline on environmentally sound material recovery and recycling of end-of-life computing equipment, Partnership for Action on Computing Equipment, Geneva / Switzerland, 2011.

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

Technology & SkillsMechanical Treatment Pre-ProcessingSource: PACE, Guideline on environmentally sound material recovery and recycling of end-of-life computing equipment, Partnership for Action on Computing Equipment, Geneva / Switzerland, 2011. End-Processing

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

Some reference documents for best available technologies (BAT) and best environmental practices (BEP)Technology & SkillsBET / BEP reference documents

Computing Equipment(all fractions)PACE, Guideline on environmentally sound material recovery and recycling of end-of-life computing equipment, Partnership for Action on Computing Equipment, Geneva / Switzerland, 2011.MetalsPyrometallurgicalHydrometallurgicalM. 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, 2009UNEP, Metal Recycling - Opportunities, Limits, Infrastructure, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Paris / France, Draft #3, 2012PlasticsStockholm 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.BatteriesERM, Battery Waste Management - Life Cycle Assessment, UK Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), London, UK, 2006.

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

Monitoring & Controlensuring 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

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

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 frameworkestablishing an institutional framework and a financing schemedeveloping a qualified and efficient e-waste recycling sectorensuring a continuous improvement and maintaining compliance of the e-waste sectorConclusion

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

GeSI & StEP E-waste AcademyDr. Mathias Schluep Empa Lerchenfeldstrasse 5 9014 St.GallenSWITZERLAND 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.chThank you!

Empa/Switzerland, 20 July 2009

*