Innovative Strategy for E-Waste Management - A Model Study of Karad, Maharashtra, India

Electronic waste is presenting a challenge for the new millennium. Almost every business organization, Institution and even educated individuals are using computers and find it essential and inevitable to conduct their day to day business activities. Rapid changes in computer technology have made it difficult for the users to restrict themselves to stick on their old machines, which are becoming obsolete, unwanted and not at all usable after a period of time. This problem of rapid obsolescence has resulted into tremendous growth of electronic waste commonly referred as E-waste. In fact, the accurate estimation of obsolete unwanted and futile computers is not possible but approximation done by the researchers has given an account of such waste material to the tune of 80% of the total computers available in the organizations of Karad, Maharashtra. Such electronic waste which contains various hazardous materials, has created an immense threat to the environment, society and the world as a whole. The E-waste incorporates various toxic metals and chemicals like lead, cadmium, selenium, arsenic, beryllium, lithium, mercury, nickel, chromium, polybrolium, biphenyl chlorofluoro carbons, uranium, zinc sulphate, toner dust, chloride and many more such toxic materials, which are deadly harmful to human health and environment as a whole, if not disposed off carefully. Therefore, it is an evitable and essential requirement to study thoroughly following points in order to have effective E-waste management: 1. To understand gravity of problem created by E-Waste, 2. To find out the causes and sources of E-waste, 3. To describe health hazard created by E-waste, 4. To determine feasible and viable methodology to manage E-waste and 5. Review of the research and coming out with conclusions and suggestive measures. Thus, the paper presented stresses the significance of E-waste management in the global scenario studying Karad as an area of study, and presents the status of E-waste as on today, suggest measures for arresting the trend of increasing E-waste, and managing it effectively.