MY TOPIC last week was about WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment). Specifically, I focused on the recovery of precious metals in WEEE which is good for the environment and the economy. I highlighted the UNEP report that value of global WEEE is around 48 billion euros in 2014 based on global trade prices.
That Friday night after my column in this paper came out, I chanced upon a documentary about Super Dragon Technology Co. Ltd. (SDTI) of Taiwan in the National Geographic channel in cable TV. The company is one of the biggest recyclers of WEEE not only in Taiwan but in the world. While the story revolved around the construction of their new building (which is a green building), they showed glimpses of the company’s recycling operation. The company use modern technology that enables them to recover almost 99% of precious materials.
One of the things that caught my attention was how their Chairman started their business using very crude methods. He used his sense of smell in the process of recovering the precious metals. Because they use toxic chemicals, he developed a form of cancer in the nose. This is what happens to thousands, or perhaps even millions, of backyard recyclers who do not have the technical know-how nor the proper safety equipment and training to recycle WEEE.
In Thailand last month, I read in the news about the illegal e-waste business in their country. Highlighted in the story was the 400 cargo containers full of electronic waste, plastic scrap and discarded metal that have been left unclaimed at Thailand’s two major ports as because of the crackdown on illegal e-waste handling. Most of them came from the United States, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong and China.
In their inspections and raids on illegal waste handlers, the Thai police found many plants had disposed contaminated waste which were results of using substandard methods, polluting the environment and causing health risks. Industrial Works Department’s deputy director general Banjong Sukreeta of Thailand said his department had suspended the import of e-waste since June 22.
Done properly and safely, “mining” precious metals from WEEE is profitable. A mobile phone can contain over 40 elements from the periodic table including base metals like copper and tin , special metals such as cobalt, indium and antimony. Precious metals include silver, gold and palladium . Metals represent on average 23% of the weight of a phone, the majority being copper, while the remainder is plastic and ceramic material. One ton of phone handsets (without battery) would contain 3.5 kg Silver, 340g of gold, 140 g of palladium as well as 130 kg copper. The Li-ion battery of a phone contains about 3.5 g of Cobalt.
Here in the Philippines there are two WEEE recyclers that I’m familiar with. One is HMR Envirocycle based in Calamba, Laguna. The other is Semirecycling Co. Inc, a Korean Company located inside Clark. Unfortunately, disposing WEEEs in the Philippines is not that easy. Since WEEEs are classified as hazardous waste in the Philippines, permit from the DENR-EMB is needed for the transport and treatment of these materials.