E-waste is simply dumped along with other wastes, all except by big/medium sized IT firms.That these should not be mixed with other wastes appears to fall on deaf ears of most individual consumers who have no compunction in throwing used/discarded CDS, DVDs, cassettes, ink-cartridges, tapes, dry cells, et al along with household rubbish. The fact that e-waste degrades slowly over years and could result in serious soil and water pollution is not appreciated by consumers.Sometime back there was a drive to collect ink-cartridges that could be reused in a proper manner or disposed off scientifically. The incentive was there for those firms to give such cartridges to authorised agents by way of acknowledgement of their contribution to save the planet from pollution.Whether some manufacturers accept or not, refilling ink-cartridges is going on, in a way reducing junking of cartridges after a single use.
This would induce at least some responsible consumers to return the used e-waste to nearby dealers. It should be possible for some NGOs/ragpickers who could be roped in, for a small fee, to go from door-to-door and collect e-waste. Such persons could be provided with a photo ID as well as a T-shirt announcing they are from a recognised agency involved in e-waste collection.Big bazaars, shopping malls, railway stations, bus stations, and airport should be provided with distinctly marked attractive bins where e-waste could be deposited.
All those concerned with pollution should take interest in recycling/proper handling of e-waste to see that these do not get burnt or dumped along with other wastes in landfills.
The time has come for India too to make a progressive law to deal with e-waste. There has to be a mass awareness campaign to warn citizens about pollution due to indiscriminate disposal of e-waste and the need for better handling and proper disposal of e-waste.
No comments:
Post a Comment