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Follow UsBANGALORE: Launching a campaign here against the growing menace of electronic waste (e-waste) disposal, Greenpeace India today reminded corporates of their responsibility towards ensuring a pollution-free environment.
Environmental activists from the international organization dumped about 500kg of Wipro-branded assorted electronic waste at the corporate headquarters of Wipro Corporation on the outskirts of the city to highlight the growing menace of dangerous chemicals being released while re-cycling e-waste.
The NGO claimed that it sourced the Wipro-branded e-waste from illegal recycling yards in Delhi, Chennai and Bangalore during its investigations.
"We consider the only way to deal with the growing problem of e-waste is for corporates to design clean electronics with longer life span that are safe and easy to recycle without exposing workers and the environment to hazardous chemicals," Greenpeace India toxics campaigner Ramapati Kumar said in a statement here.
Karnataka Pollution Control Board (KPCB) has recently served a notice to Wipro for having sent significant volumes of e-waste to unauthorized recycling yards.
"Wipro, an iconic Indian brand, prides itself on its strength in the technology and enterprise domains. It's high time it used these strengths to make the much-needed shift to clean production and build a competitive edge by introducing products that do not cause harm to the environment or to people," Kumar said.
A survey report by Greenpeace on "Toxic Tech: Recycling e-wastes in China and India," revealed that heavy metals, including lead and cadmium, acids and organic contaminants are released into the workplace and in many cases, into the surrounding environment, during the e-waste recycling and scrapping process.
"Samsung, Sony and LG are some of the multinationals, which have committed to eliminate the use of hazardous chemicals such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and brominated flame retardants (BFRs), in their products and substitute them with safer alternatives," Kumar disclosed.