**4.1 E-waste management system in developed countries**

The best e-waste management can be found in European union. For example, best e-waste management systems can be found in Switzerland and the Netherlands [1, 24]. The European Union has a law for requiring companies and manufacturers to prepare to disposals from e-waste by special mechanisms [1]. It has restricted the use of certain hazardous substances in electronic and electrical equipment. In addition, they put a law for the WEEE companies to set up systems for the WEEE treatment and producers. This system is to be responsible about their products over the entire

**Figure 2.**

*E-waste management system in Switzerland [1, 24].*

## *E-Waste Management in Different Countries: Strategies, Impacts, and Determinants DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.106644*

lifecycle of their products from design to use till disposal. In other words, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), which can be defined as "the producer's responsibility for a product is extended to the postconsumer stage of a product's life cycle" [1, 24].

As far as Switzerland is concerned, it has long experience for applying the EPR for e waste management. In Switzerland every sector has its own role and responsibility as shown in **Figure 2.**

In Switzerland, there are three producers responsibility organizations (PROs) (The Swiss Association for Information, Communication and Organizational Technology (SWICO recycling), the Swiss foundation for waste management (SENS), and the Swiss lighting recycling foundation (SLRS) [25]. These organizations are responsible of the e-waste management. The EPR system has initiated by EEE producers voluntarily in order to manage e-waste. This system has many advantages include [22, 25, 26]:


E-waste in other developed countries nearly the same with some different. In Germany, strict rules have set in order to manage the e-waste. The e-waste is collected directly from individual households without any charging from consumers for e waste disposing, and the collecting points numbers are depending on the population density and local conditions [22]. Informal collection is not allowed. After collection stage, e-waste are handover to the producers. Then e-waste is separated to five different containers. They divided to five according to the categories that are specified in the Act [22]. In the US, The US disposes from e-Waste in developing countries, which causes problems in environment and health in these regions [1]. In Japan, the Ministries of the Environment, Economy, Industry, and Trade have enacted the Basic Law in order to promote recycling and conserve resources to tackle with landfill capacity issues and resource scarcity. The main purpose of this law is to establish recycling-based society, minimize the e-waste generation, and maximize the use of secondary materials [27]. E waste Infrastructure management includes: collecting, logistics and reprocessing technologies. The retailers responsibility is collecting the EoL products from the household to the regional aggregation stations. Also there are many associations to collect the electric home appliances which are appointed by the government. There is end-user-pays principle which makes consumer pay for cost. The consumers can buy a recycling ticket in order to give it to the agent of collection while they discard their e-waste. For instance, if consumer wants to discard his computer, he should contact the manufacturer or he can take it to the post office. Then, it is routed to be recycled in the recycling facility of the manufacturer [28].

#### **4.2 E waste management system in developing countries**

In developing countries, there is no specific legislation to deal with e-waste. Developing countries do not have the required infrastructure and technical capacities for waste removal in safe ways, which has caused health problems in these countries such as neurological and respiratory, cancer, disorders, and birth defects [29]. So it has become crucial to prevent the illegal imports of WEEE. In some cases, recycling cost exceeds the revenue that is recovered from materials especially in countries which have strict environment regulations. So the end of e-waste are dumped in countries where standards of environmental are low or nonexistent including Asia and West Africa [29]. Basel Convention which is an international accord, has prevented the exportation of hazardous waste to the poor countries since 1992. The exportation is continued to export what they called it "second-hand goods" as long as the exportation of reusable goods is allowed. But in reality EU Commission estimated that nearly 75% of the second hand goods are broken and cannot be used again or just have short second life to work [1, 29]. E-waste importing from developed countries has found in developing countries because it's considered as a type of livelihood by the residents. Absence of formal recycling in developing countries, makes the e waste and informal waste treatment thrived near the residential areas [4]. Informal recycling processes and informal treatment are done

#### *E-Waste Management in Different Countries: Strategies, Impacts, and Determinants DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.106644*

without any knowledge about the hazard that affects the environment and human health in some developing countries such as Indonesia and Cambodia who have not specified law to manage the e-waste [30, 31]. Lacking of data about the amount of material flow of e-waste and lacking of awareness, have affected on the e-waste management in developing countries [32, 33]. Because of the political challenges, technological, and financial, most of developing and under-developed countries are unable to manage the e waste in a way that does not affect the environment and human health [34].

in Africa there is an ineffective infrastructure of the e-waste management. There is no constant system for e waste collection, separation, storage, sorting, and disposal of e-waste. In addition, there is nearly no enforcement effective to regulate the e-waste management and disposal. In Africa e-waste management is reregulation, and rudimentary [35]. Recycling includes disassembly of WEEE without taking into account the hazardous chemicals. For instant, printed circuit boards (PCBs) are heating to recover chips, plastics are melted and burned to isolate metals, this burning sends dioxin and other toxic gases into the air which causes pollution to the environmental and human health. While parts that are dumped in landfills, allows the remained heavy metals to harm the area and life. So, in order to protect public health and the environment, the National Environmental Management Waste Bill in South Africa has implemented for reforming waste management legislation [1].

In Bangladesh the most popular method of e waste management is the dumping into landfills, a small amount of e-waste are recycled. Fresh drives have initiated by policymakers in order to increase the disposal of e-waste, one of these policies is adopting stringent for e-waste management policy [34]. Bangladesh is responsible of 7% of e-waste dumping annually all over the world [36]. Different types from of e waste are produced in Bangladesh every year. it produced from different sources such as mobile phones, televisions….etc. The majority of these wastes are dumped in landfilling or in open water [36].

E-waste management system in Bangladesh can be divided into three categories include:


In India, only 2 percent of India's total e-waste are recycled because of the lack of legislation and poor infrastructure. This has led to a waste of the diminishing natural resources [39]. In India, several stakeholders are involved in managing the e-waste, so it originates from many sources and does not follow single set path. Most of the e-waste end up with scrap dealers and traders for economic benefits, which end to unorganized sectors [22]. Problems that faces the e-waste management system are lack information about flow and quantum of e-waste, poor infrastructure, poor implementation rules of e-waste, and producers shirking of proEPR [40].

As far as China is concerned, China has made good efforts in order to have better collection and recycling of e-waste in public and private sectors [41]. China's government has issued many of environmental laws and technical guidance related to e-waste management. The most important include [20]:-

