Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
In.November.2008,.CBS.60.Minutes.exposed.the.illegal.export.of.e-waste.
from. the. United. States. to. Hong. Kong. and. reported. that. environmentally.
conscientious.citizens.who.return.their.WEEE.to.recycling.depots.could.be.
cheated.by.organizations.whose.real.intention.is.to.illegally.export.the.mate-
rials.to.developing.countries..Sometimes.the.e-waste.is.unwittingly.sold.to.
wholesale.buyers.who.then.handle.the.e-waste.illegally.
European Union Directives
Two.regulations.concerning.e-waste.have.been.introduced.by.the.European.
Union
(
EU):.(1).The.Waste.Electrical.and.Electronic.Equipment.(Amendment).
Regulations. 2007. (WEEE. Directive. 2002/96/EC),. which. came. into. force.
on. January.1,. 2008.. This.aims. to. reduce. the.amount. of. WEEE. being. gener-
ated;. encourage. stakeholders. to. reuse,. recycle,. and. recover. these. materi-
als;. and. improve. the. environmental. performance. of. relevant. businesses.
that.manufacture,.supply,.use,.recycle,.and.recover.EEE..(2).The.Restriction.
of. the. Use. of. Certain. Hazardous. Substances. in. EEE. (RoHS). Regulations.
2006. (Directive. 2002/95/EC),. which. prohibits. the. use. of. brominated. lame.
retardants—polybrominated. diphenyl. ethers. (PBDEs),. namely,. penta-BDE.
and. octa-BDE,. and. polybrominated. biphenyls. PBBs—lead,. mercury,. cad-
mium,.and.hexavalent.chromium.exceeding.set.maximum.concentration.val-
ues.in.new.EEE.products.that.are.available.in.the.EU.market.after.July.1,.2006.
National
In. recent. years,. China. has. developed. several. regulations,. laws,. and. mea-
sures.to.deal.with.e-waste.
The.Chinese.version.of.the.EU.WEEE.directive.is.called.“The.Management.
Regulations.on.the.Recycling.and.Disposal.of.Waste.Electrical.and.Electronic.
Products”. (The. Central. People's. Government. of. the. Peoples'. Republic. of.
China.2009)..This.law.was.enacted.by.the.National.Development.and.Reform.
Commission. (NDRC). and. was. implemented. on. January. 1,. 2011.. It. aims. to.
regulate.recycling.and.disposal.of.ive.types.of.waste.related.to.household.
electrical.appliances:.TV.sets,.refrigerators,.washing.machines,.air.condition-
ers,. and. computers.. It. requires. mandatory. recycling. of. electrical. and. elec-
tronic.appliances.discarded.by.the.consumer..It.stipulates.that.recycling.be.
carried. out. by. operators. licensed. by. the. relevant. authority;. a. special. fund.
to. support. WEEE. recycling. and. disposal. be. established;. environmentally.
friendly.designs.that.favor.“circular.use”.be.created;.materials.extracted.be.
nontoxic,. nonhazardous,. and. recyclable;. and. information. to. aid. recycling.
and.information.on.product. composition,. recycling,.and.treatment.be.pro-
vided.(Yang.2008)..The.regulation.stipulates.relatively.clear.and.speciic.legal.
liabilities.and.penalties..For.example,.unauthorized.dismantling.will.result.
in.a.ine.ranging.from.U.S.$700.to.U.S.$6000.
The. law. “Management. Measure. for. the. Prevention. of. Pollution. from.
Electronic.Information.Products”.is.a.counterpart.to.the.EU.RoHS.Directive.
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