More than 50 million tons of electronic waste (e-waste) are generated each year and less than 20 percent is recycled, the UN Environment Programme said in 2019.
About 80 percent of e-waste either end up in landfills or being recycled, much of it by hand, in developing countries, exposing workers to hazardous and carcinogenic substances, such as mercury, lead and cadmium.
E-waste covers all electrical and electronic equipment and its components, now considered as one of the fastest-growing waste streams in the Philippines, according to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB).
To help address concerns over informal e-waste processing and its associated risks to the people and environment, Globe joined a multi-stakeholder partnership that will put up the country’s second community e-waste Treatment, Storage and Disposal (TSD) facility in Barangay Dampalit, Malabon City.
The facility is expected to be inaugurated by this November.
The local e-waste pickers, led by Samahan ng Magbabaklas, will be trained on proper handling and dismantling of e-waste to discourage unconventional and harmful means of recycling.
The TSD project aims to process at least 10,000 cathode-ray tube (CRT) or glass video displays from TV and computer monitors collected from nearby barangays, such as Longos, Malabon, and Capulong, Tondo.
Yoly Crisanto, Globe Chief Sustainability Officer and SVP for Corporate Communications, explained the importance of community partnerships for this advocacy.
“We aim to help address the growing concern on e-waste and ensure that local communities will not be adversely affected. This new facility will help the informal e-waste recyclers by protecting them from environmental and health hazards,” she said.
Globe is providing fund support to construct the TSD facility. The company will also provide bins for additional e-waste drop-off points and facilitate the safe transport of non-CRT e-waste items to the DENR-accredited recycling facilities, co-develop communications and creative materials.
It will also introduce affordable financial and health services, such as GCash, G-Insure and KonsultaMD to identified informal e-waste pickers in Barangay Dampalit.
Globe’s involvement in the TSD project is part of the company’s E-Waste Zero Program, which actively promotes the safe and responsible disposal of e-waste since 2014.
To date, Globe has collected more than 1.4 million kilograms of old and nonworking electronic devices from its corporate offices and key facilities, customers, and partners.
The TSD facility will be established by the DENR-EMB, through its project, “Implementation of PCB Management Programs for Electric Cooperatives and Safe e-waste Management.”
It has funding from the Global Environment Facility and is jointly implemented by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (Unido), the Integrated Recycling Industries Philippines, Ecowaste Coalition, Globe and Barangay Dampalit.
“Protection of the environment cannot be done by the DENR alone. We need partners such as private entities, international organizations, and even other government entities,” said DENR Undersecretary Atty. Jonas Leones during the ceremonial signing of the agreement in June.
The Unido serves as the primary project proponent, ensuring end-to-end program implementation. It is a specialized agency of the United Nations that promotes industrial development for poverty reduction, inclusive globalization, and environmental sustainability.
Customers who would like to support the program and help divert e-waste to proper recycling facilities may drop their e-waste in participating Globe stores nationwide or request free door-to-door hauling of e-waste.
Interested parties may visit Globe’s Sustainability website https://www.globe.com.ph/about-us/sustainability/environment.html for complete information. Organizations wanting to partner with Globe may e-mail bridgecom@globe.com.ph.