Campaign launched to collect electronic waste, raise awareness on disposal methods

AMMAN — The Ministry of Environment on Tuesday launched a campaign to collect electronic wast e and guide the public on ways of handling it.

Under the campaign, the ministry distributed 240 bins in different governorates to collect unwanted computers, cell phones, chargers, dry batteries and fluorescent light bulbs, Environment Minister Taher Shakhshir said on Tuesday.

The campaign also entails three pillars, including evaluating governing regulations and drafting a new mechanism for the safe disposal of electronic waste at the Swaqa landfill for hazardous waste, Shakhshir said.

“The second pillar includes training workers at the hazardous waste landfills and encouraging recycling… while the third pillar is about raising public awareness,” Shakhshir said at a press conference to launch the campaign.

A total of 200 bins with a capacity of 240 litres each were placed for collecting computers, cell phones and dry batteries, while 40 wooden boxes were distributed for fluorescent light bulbs, which contain mercury.

“The bins were distributed at schools, universities, hospitals and municipality headquarters to facilitate access for the public,” the minister noted.

The improper disposal or processing of electronic waste causes serious health and pollution problems, as some electronic scrap components contain contaminants such as lead, cadmium, beryllium, mercury and brominated flame retardants, according to web sources.

The campaign is implemented in cooperation with UNDP, which provided $100,000 in funding, according to UNDP representative Zeina Ahmad Ali, who noted that the campaign ends in 2015.

Ali underscored that further funding will be provided to the ministry to carry out a second phase of the campaign, when the private sector will be encouraged to handle the collection of electronic waste.

Environment Ministry officials believe that the absence of sound management of electronic waste threatens the environment and public health. Official figures indicate that 94 per cent of Jordanians own at least one cell phone and two-fifths of households own PCs, which are often discarded with the regular garbage when outdated.

In Jordan, the average age of PCs ranges between two to five years, while it is eight to 10 years for TV sets and fridges, and two to three years for most cell phones, according to ministry studies. Statistics indicate that at least one million Jordanian households are linked to the electricity network and thus each has a minimum of one electrical device.

Officials have repeatedly urged the public to drop off their unwanted or outdated computer equipment and any electronic waste at the ministry, which discards the materials at the hazardous waste unit in the Swaqa Landfill, 160 kilometres from Amman.