Latin America to generate 4,800 kt of e-waste by 2018, says new report

By Carolina Curiel (ScrapMonster Author)

December 02, 2015 07:49:27 AM

SANTIAGO (Scrap Monster): The recent report released by GSMA in collaboration with United Nations University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS) predicts 5-7% annual growth in total e-waste arising and waste from mobile phones in Latin American countries between 2014 and 2018.

According to the report, out of all regions in the world, most e-waste was generated in the Americas, Europe and Asia. In 2014, Latin American region had generated 3,904 kt of e-waste in 2014, accounting for 9% of the global e-waste. The region produced 29g per person of mobile phone e-waste during the year. 17 kt of mobile phones were discarded during the year. This is likely to grow at around 6% annually from 2015 through 2018. The region may produce 4,795 kt of e-waste by 2018, the report says.

Among Latin American countries, Brazil and Mexico were the leading e-waste generators, obviously due to the larger population in these countries. Brazil generated 1,412 kt of e-waste during 2014, followed by Mexico with 958 kt. The summary of e-waste quantities generated by other major countries in the region was: Argentina (292 kt), Colombia (252 kt), Venezuela (233 kt), Chile (176 kt), Peru (147 kt), Ecuador (73 kt), Dominican Republic (57 kt) and Gautemala (55 kt). Per person, Chile and Uruguay produced the most e-waste. By 2018, Uruguay is expected to overtake Chile in terms of per-capita e-waste generation.

Only a few LATAM countries currently have specific bills on e-waste management in place. Basic e-waste management and recycling infrastructure exists in the region, where it is mainly linked to metal scrap processing, but development of individual and specific e-waste processing facilities is expected to grow in the coming years. The report also calls for establishment of platforms for coordinated discussion with all stakeholders in the entire chain.