Tackling e-waste in Tamil Nadu
India produces over two million tons of e-waste every year, making it one of the biggest e-waste generators in the world. But in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, efforts are being made to collect, sort and recycle it.
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00:00 "Electronic devices that have become obsolete.
00:06 At Prashant Omanakuttan's plant in Coimbatore, in the state of Tamil Nadu, he and his team
00:12 take care of the appropriate recycling and disposal.
00:16 Many users simply throw their old devices or even batteries into the normal trash, with
00:22 dangerous consequences," says Prashant.
00:25 "Most people just throw away useless batteries in their garbage, thinking that they are small
00:31 in size.
00:32 But if 100,000 people did the same thing, it would be 100,000 batteries.
00:38 If they reached the dump, they would pollute the groundwater, fertile land, and eventually
00:43 infiltrate the products that are cultivated on the land.
00:49 And if we consumed those products, it would be very harmful not only for human beings,
00:54 but also for any livestock."
00:56 E-waste, like what's stored here, is among the fastest-growing waste streams in India.
01:04 According to the latest global e-waste monitor, more than 53 million tonnes of e-waste were
01:10 disposed of worldwide in 2019.
01:13 India counted for more than 3 million tonnes, and the amount is set to increase.
01:19 Because new products are coming to market all the time, with shorter usage cycles, activists
01:25 complain.
01:26 "Each year, the demand for electronic devices increases.
01:30 In years past, you could use an electronic product for at least 5 to 10 years.
01:35 But nowadays, that's decreased to one year.
01:38 That's the main reason for e-waste."
01:43 So what to do with the huge mountains of discarded appliances?
01:47 At Prashant Omana Kuttan's plant, the team first sorts the e-waste by type, separating
01:53 household appliances from consumer electronics.
01:58 Another group takes care of all devices related to data processing.
02:03 "Then there is the data destruction process.
02:08 With IT electronics like desktops and laptops, there is going to be data.
02:12 So part of our job is to destroy that data.
02:15 New products like desktops and laptops are refurbished."
02:21 The company processed 900 tonnes of e-waste last year.
02:24 Prashant Omana Kuttan sells the recycled devices to retailers and wholesalers.
02:30 Reuse is one way to ensure more sustainability.
02:33 But it's not just entire devices that can be returned to the market, but also individual
02:37 components or valuable raw materials.
02:41 "Some rare metals like gold, silver, platinum and palladium are in high demand, but they
02:47 are difficult to mine.
02:49 So to meet this need, we do urban mining.
02:51 That is, we extract those rare metals from waste products and get them back to the market.
02:57 In this process, we get hazardous waste like lead, fluorescent lights and CFLs.
03:02 And we have processes to separate and dispose of all of these types of waste."
03:09 India has now tightened up regulations for manufacturers.
03:13 Equipment now needs to have a longer shelf life.
03:17 But specialist companies like Prashant Omana Kuttan's are essential for reducing today's
03:22 mountains of electronic waste.
03:24 [BLANK_AUDIO]