UNEP plans strategy to deal with e-waste in Arab region

By V L Srinivasan

Muscat, Jan 13 : The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is planning to finalise a strategy to deal with the growing electronic waste in the Middle East region by the end of this year.

As part of this exercise, the Manama based UNEP Regional Office for West Asia (ROWA) held a meeting with its stakeholders in Cairo last year to identify the problem in the region, the kind of national strategies in vogue in each country and to come up with an action plan and a regional perspective to tackle it.

"The Cairo meeting concluded that an action plan at the regional level is feasible, identified some problems and found solutions to them. We are now in the process of identifying companies which can invest in the management of e-waste in the region," Dr Habib N El Habr, director and regional representative of UNEP ROWA told Muscat Daily.

E-waste, which comprises the spare parts of junked mobile phones, old television sets, computers, electrical meters and switch boards, and other electronic items, can lead to environ-mental hazards if it is not disposed of with adequate precautions.

Though recycling e-waste is a profitable business, many people are unaware of the monetary gains. It not only yields third grade plastic, but also valuable metals like gold, palladium and platinum, as well as certain non-metallic materials.

“Every time we replace our mobile phone, laptop, personal computer, which we do frequently because of the rapid developments in the IT field, we are adding to rapidly growing environmental problems. The various components of electronic items pose a potential environmental hazard and UNEP wants to address the issue,” Dr
Habr said.

According to him, any regional strategy has to be prepared in consonance with the sub regional action plans on the problem in the GCC, Middle East and North African countries. "This strategy has to be in an adaptable form and meet the special needs of the member countries."

He said the UNEP ROWA was acting like a facilitator in identifying companies which can invest in e-waste management. "We will provide technical support to prospective companies and hope that the entire process will be completed this year."

Recalling his visit to one of the e-waste recycling plants in the UAE last year, Dr Habr said that the company was segregating toxic material from non toxic waste in cell phones in a scientific manner and was sending the material to Germany after treatment.