European Commission E-Waste Management Policies Essay

The European Commission identifies e-waste as one of the fastest growing stream of waste in the current Global environment. The anticipated amount of e-waste by 2020 is approximately 2020 million (ec.europa.eu). In this regard, the European Commission has formulated two directives geared towards management and control of e-waste. The first directive is the WEEE Directive (Waste of Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive): Having been implemented in 2003, it provides guidelines on creation of schemes that enable consumers to return their e-waste to manufacturers free of charge (ec.europa.eu). The aim of this directive is to enhance e-waste recycling efforts and to promote re-use of e-waste materials.
In 2012, the European Commission implemented the RoHS e-waste directive (Restricting use of Hazard Substances Directive). The aim of this piece of legislation is to restrict the use of hazard materials when manufacturing electrical equipment (ec.europa.eu). Specifically, this legislation restrict electrical equipment manufacturers from using heavy metals such as cadmium, mercury, lead among others, but rather substitute them with lighter and safer alternatives (ec.europa.eu). Moreover, it encourages proper collection and recycling processes of electronic waste. It also stipulates guidelines on e-waste collection schemes, where consumers are allowed to return their e-waste to the manufacturers without being subjected to any cost (ec.europa.eu). Basically, RoHS is an improved version of the WEEE directive in a manner that it covers issues ascribed to the use of heavy metals to manufacture electronic and electrical equipment.

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