Kathmandu, Dec. 28
In the Fiscal Year 2022/23, Nepal imported about 5.7 million mobile
phones and more than 4 million last year. It also imported telephone devices
including those for cellular and wireless networks in a large volume.
According to the statistics of the Department of Customs (DoC), it also
imported more than 2.9 million sets of headphones/earphones, 2.3 million sets
of smart watches and 4.3 million mobile chargers.
Likewise, television wets, air conditioners, household and commercial
refrigerators, washing machines are also being imported to the tune of hundreds
of thousands.
Senior Officer of the Trade and Export Promotion Centre (TEPC), Krishna
Raj Bajgain, informed that last year, Nepal imported mobile phones worth Rs.
30.18 billion, television sets worth Rs. 2.49 billion, and computers worth Rs.
13.7 billion.
However, if the statistics of 2020/21 and 2021/22 are analysed, import
of mobile phones and other electronic devices was even higher as the demands of
such equipment went significantly high in the lockdowns during the COVID-19
period. People needed computers and smartphones for virtual meetings, work from
home and entertainment.
Mobile phones worth Rs. 41.2 billion, computers and parts thereof worth
Rs. 19.7 billion and TV sets worth Rs. 6 billion were imported in 2021/22. As
per industry expert, lifespan of LED TV ranges from 5-10 years while mobile
sets are generally used for 2.5-3 years.
It means, most of the mobile phones bought during the COVID-19 pandemic
era are being replaced with newer devices. While consumer durables like
refrigerators, washing machines and air conditioners last for more than a decade,
mobile phones, computers and television sets are replaced at faster pace.
E-waste generation
As people are replacing their old electronic devices and throwing away
the old sets, they are generating a huge amount of e-waste and creating a
challenge for the government and waste managers across the world.
While the Government of Nepal doesn't have recent statistics, in 2018,
the Kathmandu Valley alone generated more than 18,000 tonnes of e-waste. A
Global E-waste Monitor 2020 put the e-waste figure in Nepal at around 28,000
tonnes in 2019.
Any discarded item with a battery or plug is e-waste. It also includes
batteries which have toxic and hazardous substances pose risks to environment
and human well-being.
A report on 'Inventory
Preparation of E-Waste and Its Management in Kathmandu Valley' prepared by Pace
Nepal for the Department of Environment in 2017 listed mobile, laptop, CRT
desktop, LCD desktop, CRT television, LCD television, refrigerator and washing
machines as the major e-waste component.
The same report noted that the estimated
collection/generation of e-waste volume by scrap dealers across the valley is a
significant considering the status of Nepal as a developing country. Now, every
municipality across the country is facing the problem of growing e-waste
generation but none of them have policy or strategy for its management.
While scrap
dealers are the last component in the e-waste value chain in Nepal, most of the
unused and damaged electronic devices are being taken to India for segregation
and recycling in absence of such facilities in Nepal. Scrap collectors collect
such devices, including hazardous lead-acid and lithium batteries, at dirt
cheap price which mostly happens in urban areas.
Mobile Phone
Importers Association (MPIA) said that most of the scrap electronic devices are
handled and segregated by informal sector businesses. Most of the retailers or
distributors don't provide exchange offer or buy-back facility for the used
phones or laptops.
Several years
ago, the Nepal Telecommunication Authority (NTA) has taken some initiatives in
e-waste management policy but the drive has been stalled since. A high official
from the telecom sector regulator said that the policy should be created with
the adoption of globally accepted principle 'extended producers'
responsibility' in terms of e-waste management.
However, the
official cited the poor coordination among the concerned agencies like the
Ministry of Forest and Environment, Department of Environment, NTA, Department
of Customs and local governments behind policy confusion and inertia.
"This is
the reason the country doesn't have any statistics, policies and action plan in
terms of e-waste generation, management, processing and control," the NTA
said.
Government
should buy latest devices
Meanwhile, the
CAN Federation said that the government has also contributed to the growing
size of e-waste. President of CAN Federation, Ranjeet Kumar Poddar, said that
the computers procured by the government agencies and public schools are of
older generations which won't last long and create burden economically and
environmentally.
"While
there are 14th generation computers available in the market, public
schools are purchasing 7th generation computers in bulk. As you
know, gadgets and IT products need to be of the latest technology to be
compatible with the latest software and applications," he said.
Poddar suggested
that the government should adopt a policy to bar the entry of older generation
devices and machines if it has to control the generation of e-waste and get
most of its investment on IT devices.
Policy gap in
e-waste management
The government has
not yet formulated any standards related to e-waste although experts in health,
environment and business processing have been warning about its repercussions
for the last one and a half decades. However, Dr. Deepak Kharal, Secretary of
the Ministry of Forests and Environment (MoFE), said that the ministry is discussing
the formulation of a separate standard for it while addressing other pollution
control measures.
“It is not necessary
to blindly follow the policies and standards set by other countries. We must
focus on our own problems and develop standards tailored to our needs. However,
we must not delay further; the time is ripe to learn from the good practices of
our neighbouring countries,” he stated.
Acknowledging the
growing volume of e-waste due to excessive use of electronic items in Nepal, Dr.
Prakas Budhathoki, Spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Population,
pointed out that there are no dedicated laws or policies addressing its
management. “A standard has been formulated, but there is not a separate one
specifically for e-waste,” he said.
But this policy
absence has been a trouble for the recyclers who are seeking facilitation and
incentives for their business. Utsav Aryal of Doko Recyclers said that national
policy is called for to guide the businesses in this sector that has an
impressive value chain from scrap collectors to segregators, recyclers,
processors and exporters.
Nepal currently has
the National Waste Management Policy 2022 and the Solid Waste Management Act
2011. While the National Waste Management Policy 2022 includes provisions for
e-waste management, focusing on proper handling and disposal to mitigate environmental
and health risks, experts have said that these provisions have yet to be
effectively implemented.
Agencies like NTA and
private sector associations said that the formulation of a policy is not
helpful unless its implementation strategies and procedures are formulated and
implemented.
“It has only been a
few years since the excessive use of electronic items began, so the major
impacts may not be visible yet. However, if we fail to manage e-waste properly
now, it will severely harm future generations,” said Budhathoki. He also
stressed the need for the government to introduce robust laws and policies to
ensure effective e-waste management, safeguarding future generations from
hazardous exposure.
Health implications
Dr. Khem Karki, a
public health expert, said that electronic items contain many chemicals and
release various harmful substances, including polyester and plastic-based
compounds, which can adversely affect human health when kept close to people.
He explained that
electronic items release numerous synthetic chemicals into the environment,
which take a long time to decompose. These substances can impact human health,
potentially causing metabolic syndrome, skin diseases, hypertension and even
cancer, depending on the level and duration of exposure.
Most of the
e-waste consists of metal ions out of which 2.7 per cent are toxic. “The latest research
indicates that long-term exposure to electronic casings can lead to infertility
by hindering sperm production,” he said.
According to the
World Health Organisation (WHO), exposure to e-waste has been linked to severe
health issues, including stillbirths, premature births and low birth weight.
Lead exposure from e-waste recycling activities is particularly concerning, as
it has been associated with reduced neo-natal behavioural neurological
assessment scores and an increased risk of attention-deficit/hyperactivity
disorder (ADHD).
“E-waste volumes are
pouring globally. The Global E-waste Statistics Partnership (GESP) reported a
21 per cent increase in e-waste generation over five years, reaching 53.6
million metric tonnes in 2019. To put this into perspective, the e-waste
generated that year weighed as much as 350 cruise ships lined up to stretch 125
kilometres. This growth is expected to continue, driven by the expanding use of
computers, mobile phones and other electronic devices, alongside their rapid
obsolescence,” WHO said.
KMC relies on public
When asked about
e-waste management in the Kathmandu Metropolitan City, where most of the
electronic waste is collected, Sarita Rai, Chief of the KMC Environment
Division, said that no measures have been taken yet for the decomposition and
management of e-waste. However, she mentioned that KMC has been planning to
begin collecting and managing e-waste soon.
“We are planning to
collect e-waste by dividing it into seven clusters across the 32 wards of KMC.
We have called the tenders from Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) to handle
e-waste separately from other types of waste. Currently, we are working on strategies
for managing the waste and determining where it can be properly disposed and
decomposed,” she said.
The KMC currently
lacks a clear understanding of how to decompose e-waste and has not conducted a
detailed study on the subject. In the initial phase, the KMC plans to collect
e-waste from all service providers within the Valley. “We are requesting the service
providers to separate e-waste, and the process has already begun,” she said.
However, other local
governments have yet to aim their attention to the management of e-waste
although most of them collect the scrap tax.
Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 29 December 2024. Written jointly with Indira Aryal.
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