Shadows Across the Sea of Disposal Electronic Waste and Environmental Crime Records 2000s to 2020s

Shadows Across the Sea of Disposal Electronic Waste and Environmental Crime Records 2000s to 2020s

In 2009, electronic devices such as PCs, monitors, and cell phones collected in Japan were exported to developing countries under the name of "used products" when they should have been properly disposed of in Japan. In Guiyu, Guangdong Province in southern China, piles of electronic waste from developed countries, including Japan, were piled up, the circuit boards stripped by naked hands, plastics burned, and metals removed with acid. The air was filled with lead and toxic gases, and the groundwater was contaminated with cadmium and mercury.

Such waste export violated international treaties and Japan's Waste Disposal and Public Cleansing Law. For many years, however, it has been tacitly allowed, exploiting a gap in the system. Many of the waste electronic equipment shipped for "reuse" has not been recycled locally, but has instead been destructive to the environment and threatens the health and livelihood of the local population. The work was performed by children, who handled the toxic circuit boards with their bare hands.

More than a decade later, in the 2020s, the situation has not changed significantly. According to one report, the total global e-waste in 2019 was about 53.6 million tons. Only about 17 percent of that was recycled. In Japan, 39230 consumer electronics were illegally dumped in FY2022. Although the number is decreasing, the level remains high.

Behind these environmental crimes are inadequate systems and a lack of social awareness. Japan has a Home Appliance Recycling Law and a system for collecting used appliances. However, in many cases, distributors and collectors ship the used equipment outside of Japan as "used equipment," when in fact it is simply waste. The Ministry of the Environment and customs authorities are strengthening their response, but the distribution channels are complicated and not well monitored.

The victims are the local people of Asia and Africa. In Agbogbrosi, Ghana, large amounts of e-waste are being burned in the open, seriously affecting the health of the local population. In the Philippines, Vietnam, and Cambodia, contamination of soil and water with toxic substances is also widespread.

Meanwhile, Japan and Southeast Asian countries are sharing technologies and mechanisms to extract important metals from used equipment. Efforts are underway to expand the circle of reuse and to achieve environmentally friendly recycling. What is really required, however, is to reduce waste from the manufacturing stage and to consider what happens to used products after they are finished. And each and every one of us should pay attention to what happens to machines after they have been used.

The problem of electronic waste is not just disposal. It is a mirror reflecting the relationship between humans and the earth. The invisible thread of responsibility is quietly and surely weaving the future.



Related Information

International Maritime Organization "Ballast Water Management Convention
United Nations University "Report on Electronic Waste
Ministry of the Environment, Japan: "Material on the Home Appliance Recycling System
Basel Convention Secretariat "Monitoring Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes
Geneva Environment Network, "E-Waste and the Environment
International NGO "Survey on Illegal Disposal of E-Waste in Asia
Japan-ASEAN Cooperation Project "Resource Recovery and Reuse