ITU: Electronic Waste Rising Five Times Faster than Documented e-Waste Recycling

Emma Okonji

​The world’s generation of electronic waste is rising five times faster than documented e-waste recycling, a report jointly released by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) has revealed.  

According to the report, 62 million tonnes of e-waste was generated in 2022, while, less than one quarter (22.3 per cent) of the year’s e-waste mass was documented as having been properly collected and recycled in 2022, leaving $62 billion worth of recoverable natural resources unaccounted for and increasing pollution risks to communities worldwide. 
In Nigeria, there are lots of e-waste dump sites that also constitute pollution in the environment.

The report however said that globally, the annual generation of e-waste had been on the rise by 2.6 million tonnes annually, on track to reach 82 million tonnes by 2030, a further 33 per cent increase from the 2022 figure. 

E-waste is any discarded product with a plug or battery that constitutes health and environmental hazard, containing toxic additives or hazardous substances such as mercury, which can damage the human brain and coordination system. 

The report foresees a drop in the documented collection and recycling rate from 22.3 per cent in 2022 to 20 per cent by 2030 due to the widening difference in recycling efforts relative to the staggering growth of e-waste generation worldwide. 

According to the report, the challenges contributing to the widening gap include technological progress, higher consumption, limited repair options, shorter product life cycles, society’s growing electronification, design shortcomings, and inadequate e-waste management infrastructure. 

The report underlines that if countries could bring the e-waste collection and recycling rates to 60 per cent by 2030, the benefits – including through minimising human health risks, will exceed costs by more than $38 billion. 

It also noted that the world remains stunningly dependent on a few countries for rare earth elements, despite their unique properties crucial for future technologies, including renewable energy generation and e-mobility.  

Commenting on the implication of e-waste, Executive Director at UNITAR, Nikhil Seth, said: “Amidst the hopeful embrace of solar panels and electronic equipment to combat the climate crisis and drive digital progress, the surge in e-waste requires urgent attention.”

Director, ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau, Cosmas Luckyson  Zavazava, said: “From discarded televisions to dumped telephones, an enormous amount of e-waste is generated around the world. The latest research shows that the global challenge posed by e-waste is only going to grow. With less than half of the world implementing and enforcing approaches to manage the problem, this raises the alarm for sound regulations to boost collection and recycling. The Global E-waste Monitor is the world’s foremost source for e-waste data allowing us to track progress over time and to make critical decisions when it comes to transitioning to a circular economy for electronics.”

Head, Environment and Emergency Telecommunications Division, ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau, Vanessa Gray, said: “The Global E-waste Monitor shows that we are currently wasting $ 91 billion in valuable metals due to insufficient e-waste recycling. We must seize the economic and environmental benefits of proper e-waste management; otherwise, the digital ambitions of our future generations will face significant risks.” 

The report further said 18 million tonnes of e-waste is managed mostly by the informal sector in low and lower-middle income countries with no e-waste management infrastructure, adding that any material values recovered by the informal sector are largely (perhaps more than) offset by extremely high health and environmental costs.  

It said 5.1 million tonnes (8.2 per cent of the global total) e-waste shipped across borders in 2022, of which 3.3 million tonnes (65 per cent) was shipped from high-income to middle- and low-income countries through uncontrolled, undocumented movements 

The report however said 81 countries had e-waste legislation in 2023, up from 78 in 2019. Of the 81 countries, 67 had a legal instrument governing e-waste management with provisions promoting extended producer responsibility (EPR). 

The enforcement of e-waste policy, legislation and regulation “remains a genuine challenge globally, and the stagnation of the global e-waste collection and recycling rate is likely exacerbated by the fact that only 46 countries have collection rate targets and only 36 have recycling rate targets,” the report further said.