Objectives

In many Asian countries rapid economic growth has been accompanied by an increase in waste generation and this has resulted in an increase of the transboundary movement of recyclable resources. Electrical and electronic waste, i.e. E-waste is a great concern among researchers and policy makers due to its potential for serious environmental pollution. Many issues have been raised in association with E-waste cycles, such as inappropriate disposal and recycling methods, the increase in both domestic generation and international trade of E-waste, insufficient disposal facilities, and inadequate enforcement of regulations.

The 3R (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle) Initiative was agreed upon by the G8 leaders at the Sea Island Summit in 2004, based on a proposal by the Japanese government, and the government presented “Japan’s Action Plan to Promote Global Zero-Waste Societies” which sets out the nation’s ideas for the establishment of a Sound Material Cycle Society through the promotion of the 3Rs throughout the world. Moreover, the problem of E-waste has drawn increasing attention from people in Japan as many obsolete home electronic appliances and personal computers are being exported to other countries and activities to promote the proper management of E-waste are being undertaken in Asian regions and beyond, such as the "Environmentally Sound Management of E-waste in Asia-Pacific" project (2005 - 2008), implemented by the Secretariat of the Basel Convention, and the Partnership for Action on Computing Equipment (PACE), adopted in June 2008 by the ninth meeting of the Conference of the Parties of the Convention.

NIES has organized workshops on E-waste annually since 2004. At the past workshops, we shared our understanding of the current state of E-waste issues at national, regional, and international levels with experts from Asia and other regions, and discussed the future tasks for the promotion of the 3Rs of E-waste.

Recently, an international comparative study of domestic flow, the quantitative analysis of transboundary movement, and efficient recovery methods for valuable metals are being explored in regards to the material flow analysis of E-waste. Additionally, a detailed survey of toxicity and methods of evaluation, as well as specific efforts for the collection and recycling of E-waste for the prevention of environmental pollution and health damage are required. At the Fifth NIES Workshop on E-waste, which will be held on November 17, 2008, we will focus on several important aspects of E-waste, such as material flow analysis, toxicity and evaluation methods, and current problems with the collection, reuse and recycling system. The purpose of this workshop is to promote information exchange between experts, and contribute to a solution for E-waste issues. We are looking forward to your participation.

Organizing office Dr. A. Terazono, Ms. M. Watanabe, Ms. K. Sato

National Institute for Environmental Studies / Research Center for Material Cycles and Waste Management
TEL: +81-29-850-2506 FAX: +81-29-850-2931 E-mail: terazono@nies.go.jp

SecretariatMs. Yoshiko Okayama

ZENCOM, Inc. FAX: +81-3-3532-0808 E-mail: 5e-waste@zencom-inc.co.jp

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