10 Sep 2023: UPSC Exam Comprehensive News Analysis

E. Editorials

Category: ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. What should be done with electronic waste?

Syllabus- Conservation, Environmental Pollution and Degradation

Prelims-  Indian Cellular and Electronics Association, Pathways to Circular Economy in Indian Electronics Sector report, E-waste, 

Mains- Circular Economy Approach, Sustainable E-waste management in India

Context? 

• The issue of electronic waste (e-waste) is a growing concern globally, with India being one of the largest producers of e-waste. 
• To address this issue, the Indian Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA) has proposed a circular economy approach in its report “Pathways to Circular Economy in Indian Electronics Sector”, that focuses on refurbishing and reusing electronic components. 

What is the circular approach to e-waste management? 

• It involves setting up reverse supply chains, where used devices are collected, refurbished, and then sold again. 
• This would not only reduce electronic waste but also help recover valuable resources that can be reused in the production of new products and reduce emissions. 

Read more on Tackling E waste.

What are the challenges in implementing this approach? 

• The current method of handling e-waste involves disposing of devices and parts in landfills or incinerators. This is unsustainable and harmful to the environment. Incentives for various stakeholders in the supply chain to adopt a circular economy approach is missing. 
• Lack of infrastructure and technology to properly process and recycle e-waste. 
• Inverted duty structure leading to methods called cannibalization, which refers to the practice of buying complete devices to harvest spare parts at lower costs, to maintain competitiveness. Increased refurbishing needs access to spare parts at lower prices. 
• Currently, most e-waste is handled by the informal sector, which often lacks the necessary expertise and equipment to safely and efficiently recycle electronic components. For example, about 90% of waste collection and 70% of the recycling are managed by the informal sector. 
• Another challenge is the lack of awareness among consumers about the importance of proper e-waste management. Many people are hesitant to hand over their used devices for recycling due to concerns about data privacy and security. According to reports, around 200 million are believed to be left unused in people’s homes due to this. 
• Viability of recycling plants are doubtful as materials to recycle are disaggregated and scattered increasing the cost of operations.

Way Forward: 

• ICEA report recommends establishing public-private partnerships to set up high-tech recycling centers that can extract the maximum value from e-waste.
• It also recommends educating consumers about the benefits of e-waste recycling and promoting initiatives that offer incentives for responsible device disposal.
• An auditable database could be created to track the materials collected through this process.
• Geographical clusters could be set up where devices are gathered and disassembled.
• ‘High yield’ recycling centers should be incentivized to maximize the value extracted from recycled materials, such as rare earth metals found in semiconductors.
• The government could provide financial support (e.g., covering 25% of capital expenditures) to encourage the establishment of advanced recycling facilities.
• Encouraging repair and extending product lifetimes through a “right to repair” policy. 

Nut Graf: Adopting a circular economy approach to managing e-waste is essential for reducing the environmental impact of electronic devices and conserving valuable resources. While there are challenges to overcome, with the right policies and technologies in place, India can become a leader in sustainable e-waste management practices.

Category: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

1. Southeast Asia’s source of stability

Syllabus- Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and Agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.

Prelims-  ASEAN and its members, RCEP, East Asia Summit, ASEAN Economic Community

Mains- Role of ASEAN in the US-China rivalry, Challenges to ASEAN Centrality in the Indo-pacific

ASEAN

• ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) has its origins in 1967 where 5 countries came together to oppose communism.
• It has since expanded to 10 members and has become a regional intergovernmental organization that promotes economic growth, social progress, cultural development, and regional peace and stability.
• The members include Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam 
• ASEAN’s two core principles are non-interference in the internal affairs of its members and consensual decision-making. 
• A consistent effort has been made to maintain ASEAN Centrality (a key objective of ASEAN Charter) in its affairs. 

Importance: 

• Part of the strategically important region containing the Strait of Malacca and South China Sea.
• The ASEAN countries have a combined GDP of approximately $3.2 trillion in 2022, making them the world’s fifth-largest economy.
• It has a large population of 600 million people, making it an attractive market for businesses.

Contributions: 

• ASEAN has been successful in promoting economic cooperation and regional integration.
• ASEAN’s primary goals include creating a unified market and production base within the region, reducing tariffs, and promoting economic integration among member states.
• It has established various initiatives such as AFTA (ASEAN Free Trade Area) and AEC (ASEAN Economic Community) to achieve these goals. AEC was established in 2015 to create a single market and production base in Southeast Asia.
• ASEAN has also established international forums such as ARF (ASEAN Regional Forum) (1994) and EAS (East Asia Summit) (2005) to collaborate with external partners while maintaining the “centrality” principle.
• ASEAN has entered into trade agreements with several regional partners, including Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea.
• Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership which covers 30% of the world’s population also involves the ASEAN countries apart from five other countries.

Read more about ASEAN.

The ASEAN way: A Success? 

• ASEAN nations are vastly heterogeneous in terms of cultures, growth and developmental levels, modes of governance, and so on.
• Singapore has the highest GDP per capita in the group, while Myanmar has the lowest.
• Singapore and Vietnam are considered as some of the world’s most religiously diverse countries, while Buddhist-majority Cambodia and Muslim-majority Indonesia are fairly homogeneous.
• The success of ASEAN has been attributed to its informal organizational structure, heavy focus on consensus building, equal weightage to members, and a policy of non-interference.
• This has been called the “ASEAN Way”.

Challenges: 

• Despite its achievements, ASEAN faces several geopolitical challenges, including:
  • Inability to provide a coordinated response to China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea, where five ASEAN members have contesting claims.
  • Criticism for not adequately isolating the military junta that seized power in Myanmar in 2021.
  • Dilemma of choosing sides between the US and China, given their increasing rivalry in the region.
• Critics also argue that ASEAN’s informal organizational structure and consensus building approach constrains it from taking strong and cohesive action on important issues making it ineffective and toothless.

Nut Graf: ASEAN as a regional intergovernmental organization has been successful in promoting economic cooperation and regional integration, but it faces several geopolitical challenges, such as China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea and being enmeshed in the US-China rivalry.