NT NETWORK
PANAJI
Putting the onus on local bodies for storing and transporting e-waste or electronic waste generated in the state, the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) has asked all the panchayats and municipal councils to identify a storing place to channelise the e-waste to an authorised collection centre.
The municipalities and panchayats have been asked to ensure a storage facility for the e-waste generated in each household in their jurisdiction. They have also been asked to lay down a procedure for collection of the e-waste and hand over the same to an authorised collection centre with prior intimation to the GSPCB. The state has six authorised e-waste collectors.
The GSPCB has started the implementation of the e-waste (Management) Rules 2016, which mandates consumers, bulk consumers like government institutions, banks, educational institutions, healthcare facilities and manufacturing units to maintain records of e-waste generated by them. Such records have to be made available to the GSPCB every year. The GSPCB will then prepare and submit to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), an annual report (based on the data received from consumers) with regard to the implementation of these rules, by September 30, every year.
E-waste means the waste electrical and electronic equipment, whole or in parts, or rejects from their manufacturing and repair process, which are intended to be discarded. As of now, the GSPCB neither has any records nor does it monitor and check the e-waste generated and disposed by households, commercial establishments and the government sector.
“Under the new rules, every producer, consumers and bulk consumers involved in the manufacture, sale, purchase and processing of electronic equipment or components must maintain monthly records and submit them to the GSPCB every year. Failure to comply is a punishable offence under Section 15 of the Environment Protection Act, 1986. We will also spread awareness among consumers on handling the equipment after its use along with the do’s and don’ts,” said a GSPCB official.
The new rules have not suggested the quantum of penalty and, therefore, the GSPCB has sent a proposal to the state government to determine the amount a violator can be fined in case of a penalty.
As of now, the GSPCB records only include the figures of e-waste generated by manufacturing units which amounts to 90 tonnes per annum. However, if the e-waste generated by both, households and commercial establishments is considered, it is estimated to be around 900 tonnes per annum.
The Union government, under the e-waste (Management) Rules, 2016, has for the first time also brought under its purview the management of the waste generated from the disposal of Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLs) and other lamps containing mercury. These items were not covered under the earlier rules framed five years ago.
E-waste is considered dangerous, as certain electronic components contain substances such as lead, cadmium, lead oxide (in cathode ray tubes), toxic gases, toxic metals, biologically active materials, acids, plastic and plastic additives. These substances are considered hazardous, depending on their condition and density. E-waste is mostly found dumped in garbage bins or dismantled by a local scrap dealer, though it is illegal to dump an old TV, mobile or laptop into a garbage bin or sell any of these to the local scrap dealer.
The new rules make the manufacturers responsible for collecting e-waste generated during the manufacture of any electrical and electronic equipment and channelising the same for recycling or disposal and seeking authorisation from the state pollution control board.