eWaste in Latin America: Statistical analysis and policy recommendations

Abstract

The modern lifestyle of a growing number of people living on the planet increasingly relies on electric and electronic equipment (EEE). The use of modern information and communication technology (ICT) can contribute to achieving some of the Sustainable Development Goals and enable a transition to more efficient resource use, which can engender key societal benefits. In addition, increased demand for EEE is impacting consumption on a global level. In the case of some metals, such as cobalt and palladium, the mobile phone industry alone consumes more than 10 per cent of the annual global production. As a result of increased EEE production and use, the amount of discarded electronics (e-waste1) is also growing worldwide, reaching more than 40,000 kilotonnes (kt) of electronic products discarded in 2014, nearly 4,000 kt of which occurred in Latin America (LATAM). For mobile phones in particular, nearly 189 kt have been discarded worldwide, of which nearly 17 kt occurred in LATAM. This means that worldwide, e-waste generated from mobile phones represents less than 0.5 per cent of the total weight of the world’s e-waste, which is the same proportion for LATAM; ICT equipment, and mobile phones in particular, make up a relatively small segment of global e-waste.