E-Waste Management

These rules may be called the E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2016. They shall come into force from the 1st October, 2016. These rules shall apply to every manufacturer, producer, consumer, bulk consumer, collection centres, dealers, e-retailer, refurbisher, dismantler and recycler involved in manufacture, sale, transfer, purchase, collection, storage and processing of e-waste or electrical and electronic equipment listed in Schedule I, including their components, consumables, parts and spares which make the product operational but shall not apply to -

1. Used lead acid batteries as covered under the Batteries (Management and Handling) Rules, 2001 made under the Act;
2. Micro enterprises as defined in the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006 (27 of 2006); and
3. Radio-active wastes as covered under the provisions of the Atomic Energy Act, 1962 (33 of 1962) and rules made there under.

RULE 6: Responsibilities of collection centres.

1. Collect e-waste on behalf of producer or dismantler or recycler or refurbisher including those arising from orphaned products; Provided the collection centres established by producer can also collect e-waste on behalf of dismantler, refurbisher and recycler including those arising from orphaned products;
2. Ensure that the facilities are in accordance with the standards or guidelines issued by Central Pollution Control Board from time to time;
3. maintain records in Form-2 of the e-waste handled as per the guidelines of Central Pollution Control Board and make such records available for scrutiny by the Central Pollution Control Board or the concerned State Pollution Control Board as and when asked for.

RULE 7: Responsibilities of dealers.

1. In the case the dealer has been given the responsibility of collection on behalf of the producer, the dealer shall collect the ewaste by providing the consumer a box, bin or a demarcated area to deposit ewaste, or through take back system and send the e-waste so collected to collection centre or dismantler or recycler as designated by producer;
2. The dealer or retailer or e-retailer shall refund the amount as per take back system or Deposit Refund Scheme of the producer to the depositor of e-waste;

RULE 8: Responsibilities of the refurbisher.

1. Collect e-waste generated during thre process of refurbishing and channelize the waste to authorised dismantler or recycler through its collection centre;
2. Make an application in Form 1(a) in accordance with the procedure laid down in sub-rule (4) of rule 13 to the concerned State Pollution Control Board for grant of one time authorisation;
1. The concerned State Pollution Control Board shall authorise the Refurbisherv on one time basis as per Form 1 (bb) and authorisation would be deemeconsidered if not objected to within a period of thirty days;
2. The authorised Refurbisher shall be required to submit details of e-waste generated to the concerned State Pollution Control Board on yearly basis;
3. File annual returns in Form-3 to the concerned State Pollution Control Board, on or before the 30th day of June following the financial year to which that return relates;
4. Maintain records of the e-waste handled in Form-2 and such records should be available for scrutiny by the appropriate authority.

RULE 9: Responsibilities of consumer or bulk consumer.

1. Consumers or bulk consumers of electrical and electronic equipment listed in Schedule I shall ensure that e-waste generated by them is channelised through collection centre or dealer of authorised producer or dismantler or recycler or through the designated take back service provider of the producer to authorised dismantler or recycler;
2. bulk consumers of electrical and electronic equipment listed in Schedule I shall maintain records of e-waste generated by them in Form-2and make such records available for scrutiny by the concerned State Pollution Control Board;
3. bulk consumers of electrical and electronic equipment listed in Schedule I shall file annual returns in Form-3, to the concerned State Pollution Control Board on or before the 30th day of June following the financial year to which that return relates. In case of the bulk consumer with multiple offices in a State, one annual return combining information from all the offices shall be filed to the concerned State Pollution Control Board on or before the 30th day of June following the financial year to which that return relates.

RULE 10: Responsibilities of the dismantler.

1. Ensure that the facility and dismantling processes are in accordance with the standards or guidelines prescribed by Central Pollution Control Board from time to time;
2. Ensure that the facility and dismantling processes are in accordance with the standards or guidelines prescribed by Central Pollution Control Board from time to time;
3. Maintain record of e-waste collected, dismantled and sent to authorised recycler in Form-2 and make such record available for scrutiny by the Central Pollution Control Board or the concerned State Pollution Control Board;
4. File a return in Form-3, to the concerned State Pollution Control Board as the case may be, on or before 30th day of June following the financial year to which that return relates;

RULE 11: Responsibilities of the recycler.

1. Shall ensure that the facility and recycling processes are in accordance with the standards or guidelines prescribed by the Central Pollution Control Board from time to time;
2. obtain authorisation from concerned State Pollution Control Board in accordance with the procedure under the sub-rule (3) of rule 13;
3. Maintain record of e-waste collected, dismantled, recycled and sent to authorized recycler in Form-2 and make such record available for scrutiny by the Central Pollution Control Board or the concerned State Pollution Control Board;
4. file annual returns in Form-3, to the concerned State Pollution Control Board as the case may be, on or before 30th day of June following the financial year to which that return relates;

RULE 12: Responsibilities of State Government for environmentally sound management of E-waste.

1. Department of Industry in State or any other government agency authorised in this regard by the State Government, to ensure earmarking or allocation of industrial space or shed for e-waste dismantling and recycling in the existing and upcoming industrial park, estate and industrial clusters;
2. Department of Labour in the State or any other government agency authorized in this regard by the State Government shall:
1. Ensure recognition and registration of workers involved in dismantling and recycling;
2. Assist formation of groups of such workers to facilitate setting up dismantling facilities;
3. Undertake industrial skill development activities for the workers involved in dismantling and recycling;
4. Undertake annual monitoring and to ensure safety & health of workers involved in dismantling and recycling;
3. State Government to prepare integrated plan for effective implementation of these provisions, and to submit annual report to Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.

RULE 15: Procedure for storage of e-waste.

Every manufacturer, producer, bulk consumer, collection centre, dealer, refurbisher, dismantler and recycler may store the e-waste for a period not exceeding one hundred and eighty days and shall maintain a record of collection, sale, transfer and storage of wastes and make these records available for inspection:

Provided that the concerned State Pollution Control Board may extend the said period up to three hundred and sixty five days in case the waste needs to be specifically stored for development of a process for its recycling or reuse.

RULE 16: Reduction in the use of hazardous substances in the manufacture of electrical and electronic equipment and their components or consumables or parts or spares.

Every producer of electrical and electronic equipment and their components or consumables or parts or spares listed in Schedule I shall ensure that, new Electrical and Electronic Equipment and their components or consumables or parts or spares do not contain Lead, Mercury, Cadmium, Hexavalent Chromium, polybrominated biphenyls and polybrominated diphenyl ethers beyond a maximum concentration value of 0.1% by weight in homogenous materials for lead, mercury, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls and polybrominated diphenyl ethers and of 0.01% by weight in homogenous materials for cadmium.

RULE 19: Transportation of e-waste.

Every transportation of e-waste shall be carried out as per the manifest system whereby the transporter shall be required to carry a document (three copies) prepared by the sender, giving the details as per Form-6:

Provided that the transportation of waste generated from manufacturing or recycling destined for final disposal to a treatment, storage and disposal facility shall follow the provisions under Hazardous Wastes (Management, Handling and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2008.

RULE 20: Accident reporting.

Where an accident occurs at the facility processing e-waste or during transportation of e-waste, the producer, refurbisher, transporter, dismantler, or recycler, as the case may be, shall report immediately to the concerned State Pollution Control Board about the accident through telephone and e-mail.

Responsibilities of the Meghalaya State Pollution Control Board:

1. Grant and renewal of authorisation to manufacturers, dismantlers, recyclers and refurbishers.
2. Monitoring and compliance of Extended Producer Responsibility - Authorisation as directed by Central Pollution Control Board and that of dismantlers, recyclers and refurbishers authorisation.
3. Conduct random inspection of dismantler or recycler or refurbisher.
4. Action against violations of these rules.

These rules can be viewed in detail from the websites of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Government of India, www.moef.nic.in or Meghalaya State Pollution Control Board website, www.megspcb.gov.in