Recently
I was in an e-waste awareness workshop organized by one of the leading industry
associations in India. The speakers spoke eloquently on why e-waste management
is important for a country like India and how a recently promulgated guideline
on e-waste management has become a game changer for waste management in India. So
far, so good.
At the end of the
session, I could not help but ask a question to the speaker – What percentage
of e-waste coming to recycler, at the end of products life, goes back to the producer
as input? He was aghast at my question and retorted – why should it go back to
producers? I was appalled to hear his reply! Even more appalling was the fact
that this reply came from a person responsible for the green initiatives in his
organization. This reply could have been understandable a decade ago when the
sole mindset of producers was to launch new products at breakneck speed and
when consumers were not enthusiastic about industries using reused or recycled
spare parts in new products being sold in the market. But in today’s changed
world, this reply was perplexing, to say the least.
Later
in panel discussion, I spoke on the importance of closing the loop. For current and future scenario, linear economic
model is no longer an option. We just cannot endlessly draw raw materials from
earth, manufacture, distribute and consume products, and dispose them to
landfill at the end of products life. This is all the more true in modern
times, when products are discarded by consumers, much before their ‘life’, in
the rush to own the latest model. In such a scenario, we must retrieve and
re-use some of these parts from supposed ‘waste materials’ going to landfill.
The mainstream producers of electronics equipment in India are still hesitant
to associate with refurbished products, as they fear that it will cut into
their market for new products and suspect that it would cast a shadow on their
brand image. I think it is time they ‘wake up and smell the coffee’. The truth
is Apple, an iconic brand, is selling refurbished products from store.apple.com!
Apple must have considered the same conflicts that Indian electronic equipment
manufacturers are currently going through. But Apple is selling refurbished
products, backed by its warranty, as it offers value to some consumers. In
fact, it adds to its USP, contributing to a feel-good factor in the consumer
empowering them to do their bit for the environment.
It
would be really interesting to see how consumers, producers and regulators join
hand to promote refurbished products. For normal consumers, quality of
refurbished products is a matter of great concerns. With less and less OEMs
coming forward with such products, the market is flooded by local manufacturers
offering the same. Some of these
products may have gone through some quality control system but most have
variable quality leading to a poor perception of quality in the mind of
consumers. The onus to correct this
squarely lies on producers, and government can surely chip in. Today most Eco
label and third party certifications, such as EPEAT, for electronic products,
specify minimum recycle plastic content. But remember, all these Eco label,
voluntary standards and certifications are for new products. Why can’t we have a label or standards for
refurbished products that establish quality control system for manufacture/assembly
of such products?
This
may be a wild idea at present when many countries are still struggling to
promote credible Eco label and voluntary environmental standards for new
products. But countries having successful labeling scheme can definitely think
of such voluntary standards and certification. The introduction of such
standards will do as much good, if not more, as Eco label and voluntary
environmental standards have done in promoting environmental friendly products.
These standards and certification would help reduce variability of quality in
refurbished products and remove quality stigma associated with refurbished
products and also encourage the behavioral change of producers and consumers
toward long–term sustainability. Backed by the Government demand for
refurbished products, producers can join hands with recyclers in making such products
that meets voluntary standards and invigorate refurbished market for times to
come.
I
would like to end this piece with a phrase that my ten-year-old son had heard
and now keeps repeating – You can’t run a linear system on a finite planet!
