E-waste in the world today: An overview of problems and a proposal for improvement in Brazil
Corresponding Author
Carlos Alberto de Albuquerque
Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Southern Minas Gerais, Pouso Alegre, MG, Brazil
Correspondence
Carlos Alberto de Albuquerque, Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Southern Minas Gerais, Ifsuldeminas, Brazil.
Email: carlos.albuquerque@ifsuldeminas.edu.br
Search for more papers by this authorCarlos Henrique Pereira Mello
Federal University of Itajubá, Itajubá, Brazil
Search for more papers by this authorJosé Henrique de Freitas Gomes
Federal University of Itajubá, Itajubá, Brazil
Search for more papers by this authorValquíria Claret dos Santos
Federal University of Itajubá, Itajubá, Brazil
Search for more papers by this authorJulia Vidigal Zara
Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Southern Minas Gerais, Pouso Alegre, MG, Brazil
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Carlos Alberto de Albuquerque
Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Southern Minas Gerais, Pouso Alegre, MG, Brazil
Correspondence
Carlos Alberto de Albuquerque, Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Southern Minas Gerais, Ifsuldeminas, Brazil.
Email: carlos.albuquerque@ifsuldeminas.edu.br
Search for more papers by this authorCarlos Henrique Pereira Mello
Federal University of Itajubá, Itajubá, Brazil
Search for more papers by this authorJosé Henrique de Freitas Gomes
Federal University of Itajubá, Itajubá, Brazil
Search for more papers by this authorValquíria Claret dos Santos
Federal University of Itajubá, Itajubá, Brazil
Search for more papers by this authorJulia Vidigal Zara
Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Southern Minas Gerais, Pouso Alegre, MG, Brazil
Search for more papers by this authorAbstract
Environmental issues have been at the center of society's concerns for a long time. Recently, this kind of concern is growing even more due to the damage caused to the environment by electrical and electronic product waste. Based on this same concern, this work aimed to analyze, through a literature review, the production and treatment of electronic waste in today's world, with an emphasis on Brazil and China. The articles reviewed point to an increase in the production of this type of waste, in both Brazil and China, and reveal that the current processes of treatment of electronic waste mostly aim to obtain profit through the recovery of precious metals such as copper. This paper concluded that although Brazil is one of the major producers of e-waste, more than 90% of its e-waste has not had a proper final destination. This deficiency in e-waste treatment in Brazil is mainly due to financial factors and the lack of a robust educational policy focused on the environment. Thus, this work suggests the implementation of an effective educational policy aimed at environmental conservation, as well as investments in research on recycling methods in Brazil, especially on the use of e-waste as an aggregate in the manufacture of concrete.
REFERENCES
- Apisitpuvakul, W., Piumsomboon, P., Watts, D. J., & Koetsinchai, W. (2008). LCA of spent fluorescent lamps in Thailand at various rates of recycling. Journal of Cleaner Production, 16, 1046–1061. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2007.06.015
- Askham, C., Gade, A. L., & Hanssen, O. J. (2012). Combining REACH, environmental and economic performance indicators for strategic sustainable product development. Journal of Cleaner Production, 35, 71–78. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2012.05.015
- Azevedo, L. P., da Silva Araújo, F. G., Lagarinhos, C. A. F., Tenório, J. A. S., & Espinosa, D. C. R. (2017). Ewaste management and sustainability: a case study in Brazil. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 24, 25221–25232. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-0099-7
- Buttel, F. H. (2003). Environmental sociology and the explanation of environmental reform. Organization & Environment, 16, 306–344. https://doi.org/10.1177/1086026603256279
- Cayumil, R., Khanna, R., Ikram-Ul-Haq, M., Rajarao, R., Hill, A., & Sahajwalla, V. (2014). Generation of copper rich metallic phases from waste printed circuit boards. Waste Management, 34, 1783–1792. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2014.05.004
- Chen, C., Zhu, J., Yu, J.-Y., & Noori, H. (2012). A new methodology for evaluating sustainable product design performance with two-stage network data envelopment analysis. European Journal of Operational Research, 221, 348–359. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejor.2012.03.043
- Chi, X., Wang, M. Y. L., & Reuter, M. A. (2014). E-waste collection channels and household recycling behaviors in Taizhou of China. Journal of Cleaner Production, 80, 87–95. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2014.05.056
- Coelho, M. S., Resende, F. M., & Fernandes, G. W. (2013). Chinese economic growth: Implications for Brazilian conservation policies. Nature Conservation, 11, 88–91. https://doi.org/10.4322/natcon.2013.014
- de Souza, R. G., Clímaco, J. C. N., Sant'Anna, A. P., Rocha, T. B., do Valle, R. de A. B., & Quelhas, O. L. G. (2016). Sustainability assessment and prioritisation of e-waste management options in Brazil. Waste Management, 57, 46–56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2016.01.034
- Diagnóstico da Geração de Resíduos Eletroeletrônicos no Estado de Minas Gerais [WWW Document], 2009. Fundação Estadual do Meio Ambient. http://www2.mma.gov.br/port/conama/processos/4E1B1104/DiagGer_REE_MG_FEAM_EMPA.pdf. Accessed November 29, 2018.
- Europeu, P. (2003). DIRECTIVA 2002/96/CE DO PARLAMENTO EUROPEU E DO CONSELHO de 27 de Janeiro de 2003 relativa aos resíduos de equipamentos eléctricos e electrónicos (REEE) 5, 24–38.
- Gómez-Baggethun, E., & Naredo, J. M. (2015). In search of lost time: the rise and fall of limits to growth in international sustainability policy. Sustainability Science, 10, 385–395. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-015-0308-6
- Hadi, P., Barford, J., & McKay, G. (2013). Toxic heavy metal capture using a novel electronic waste-based material—mechanism, modeling and comparison. Environmental Science & Technology, 47, 130719140359006. https://doi.org/10.1021/es4001664
- Herat, S., & Agamuthu, P. (2012). E-waste: a problem or an opportunity? Review of issues, challenges and solutions in Asian countries. Waste Management Research, 30, 1113–1129. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734242X12453378
- Jha, M. K., Kumari, A., Choubey, P. K., Lee, J., Kumar, V., & Jeong, J. (2012). Leaching of lead from solder material of waste printed circuit boards (PCBs). Hydrometallurgy, 121–124, 28–34. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hydromet.2012.04.010
- Kasper, A. C., Berselli, G. B. T., Freitas, B. D., Tenório, J. A. S., Bernardes, A. M., & Veit, H. M. (2011). Printed wiring boards for mobile phones: Characterization and recycling of copper. Waste Management, 31, 2536–2545. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2011.08.013
- Kiddee, P., Naidu, R., & Wong, M. H. (2013). Electronic waste management approaches: An overview. Waste Management, 33, 1237–1250. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2013.01.006
- Li, J., Lopez, B. N., Liu, L., Zhao, N., Yu, K., & Zheng, L. (2013). Regional or global WEEE recycling. Where to go? Waste Management, 33, 923–934. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2012.11.011
- Li, J., Zeng, X., & Stevels, A. (2015). Ecodesign in consumer electronics: past, present, and future. Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology, 45, 840–860. https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2014.900245
- Liu, H., Li, J., Wen, X., & Zhou, X. (2007). Investigation on collection mode of domestic E-waste in Urban China: the Case of Beijing. In: Proceedings of the 2007 IEEE International Symposium on Electronics and the Environment. IEEE, pp. 257–261. https://doi.org/10.1109/ISEE.2007.369404
- Man, M., Naidu, R., & Wong, M. H. (2013). Persistent toxic substances released from uncontrolled ewaste recycling and actions for the future. The Science of the Total Environment, 463–464, 1133–1137. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2012.07.017
- Migliano, J. E. B., Demajorovic, J., & Xavier, L. H. (2014). Shared responsibility and reverse logistics systems for e-waste in Brazil. J. Oper. Supply Chain Manag., 7, 91. https://doi.org/10.12660/joscmv7n2p91-109
10.12660/joscmv7n2p91-109 Google Scholar
- Monjeau, A., Smith-Flueck, J. A., & Flueck, W. (2013). The need to unmask lurking false friends: sustainability is a state, not a process! a reply to Fernandez et al. (2012). Nature Conservation, 11, 96–98. https://doi.org/10.4322/natcon.2013.016
- Orlins, S., & Guan, D. (2016). China's toxic informal e-waste recycling: Local approaches to a global environmental problem. Journal of Cleaner Production, 114, 71–80. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.05.090
- Qu, Y., Zhu, Q., Sarkis, J., Geng, Y., & Zhong, Y. (2013). A review of developing an e-wastes collection system in Dalian, China. Journal of Cleaner Production, 52, 176–184. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2013.02.013
- Robinson, B. H. (2009). E-waste: An assessment of global production and environmental impacts. The Science of the Total Environment, 408, 183–191. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2009.09.044
- Shih, H. S. (2017). Policy analysis on recycling fund management for E-waste in Taiwan under uncertainty. Journal of Cleaner Production, 143, 345–355. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.12.103
- Shuva, M. A. H., Rhamdhani, M. A., Brooks, G. A., Masood, S., & Reuter, M. A. (2016). Thermodynamics data of valuable elements relevant to e-waste processing through primary and secondary copper production: A review. Journal of Cleaner Production. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.04.061
- Song, Q., & Li, J. (2015). A review on human health consequences of metals exposure to e-waste in China. Environmental Pollution, 196, 450–461. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2014.11.004
- Sun, Z.H.I., Xiao, Y., Sietsma, J., Agterhuis, H., Visser, G., & Yang, Y. (2015). Characterisation of metals in the electronic waste of complex mixtures of end-of-life ICT products for development of cleaner recovery technology. Waste Management, 35, 227–235. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2014.09.021
- Tanskanen, P. (2013). Management and recycling of electronic waste. Acta Materialia, 61, 1001–1011. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actamat.2012.11.005
- Wäger, P.A., Hischier, R., & Eugster, M. (2011). Environmental impacts of the Swiss collection and recovery systems for Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE): A follow-up. The Science of the Total Environment, 409, 1746–1756. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2011.01.050
- Wang, W., Tian, Y., Zhu, Q., & Zhong, Y. (2017). Barriers for household e-waste collection in China: Perspectives from formal collecting enterprises in Liaoning Province. Journal of Cleaner Production, 153, 299–308. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.03.202
- Wang, Z., Guo, D., & Wang, X. (2016). Determinants of residents’ e-waste recycling behaviour intentions: Evidence from China. Journal of Cleaner Production, 137, 850–860. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.07.155
- Widmer, R., Oswald-Krapf, H., Sinha-Khetriwal, D., Schnellmann, M., & Böni, H. (2005). Global perspectives on e-waste. Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 25, 436–458. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eiar.2005.04.001
- Zeng, X., Zheng, L., Xie, H., Lu, B., Xia, K., Chao, K., …, Li, J. (2012). Current status and future perspective of waste printed circuit boards recycling. Procedia Environmental Science, 16, 590–597. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proenv.2012.10.081
10.1016/j.proenv.2012.10.081 Google Scholar
- Zeng, X., Song, Qingbin, Li, Jinhui, Yuan, Wenyi, Duan, Huabo, & Liu, Lili (2015). Solving e-waste problem using an integrated mobile recycling plant. Journal of Cleaner Production, 90, 55–59.
- Zeng, X., Wang, F., Li, J., & Gong, R. (2017). A simplified method to evaluate the recycling potential of e-waste. Journal of Cleaner Production, 168, 1518–1524. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.06.232
- Zeng, X., & Li, J. (2016). Measuring the recyclability of e-waste: An innovative method and its implications. Journal of Cleaner Production, 131, 156–162. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.05.055
- Zhang, K., Schnoor, J. L., & Zeng, E. Y. (2012). E-waste recycling: Where does it go from here? Environmental Science & Technology, 46, 10861–10867. https://doi.org/10.1021/es303166s
