Status quo of e-waste management in mainland China

In China, the use and obsolescence of both electronic and electrical equipment have increased rapidly in recent years. China has also begun to take measures to cope with this problem since it began experiencing a rapid process of industrialization and urbanization in the 1990s. In this paper, the profile of the electrical and electronic waste (e-waste) problem in China is depicted from such aspects as domestic e-waste and imported e-waste, along with their recycling systems, policies, and regulations. Based on statistics of the consumption of major household appliances and personal computers, a forecast is made of the numbers of obsolete major household appliances and personal computers. The results show that currently the number of electrical and electronic products in use in China is tremendous. An investigation on household appliances and personal computers in Beijing was made to assess the use and obsolescence of these products. Also, the legal issues relating to e-waste in China are summarized, and these will be the juristic foundation for the solution of e-waste problems.