Electronic recycling has become a billion-dollar industry. African Sky is positioning itself to turn e-trash to profit as South Africa climbs on the bandwagon LOCAL black-empowered company African Sky, which entered the electronic recycling arena a year-and-a-half-ago in a bid to turn e-trash to profit, is on the brink of expanding its footprint to the Coega industrial development zone, in the Eastern Cape.

Based in Benoni, on the East Rand, the company currently recycles about 100t of e-waste a month. Once its volumes reach a certain level, which CEO Allen Werth is loathe to reveal, the facility at Coega will be established as a larger-scale e-waste sorting point, while the Gauteng facility will remain a collection point.

Werth estimates that by year-end the tonnages it recycles will justify establishing the Coega facility. "South Africa`s e-waste volume is increasing exponentially, as it has in the rest of the world," he says.

Solid figures for SA are hard to come by, but Werth notes the general consensus is that SA generates in excess of 30 000 t of e-waste a year, yet a mere 2% of this is recycled.

WHAT`S IT GOT TO DO WITH ME?

Electronic waste or e-waste is any broken or unwanted electrical or electronic appliance. It includes computers, entertainment electronics, mobile phones and other items, used for data processing, telecoms or entertainment in private households and businesses.

Worth noting is that, by ton weight, computers account for the lowest percentage of e-waste in SA, while consumer electronic goods, industrial electronics and cellphones account for larger volumes of e-waste.

Although there is an absence of local legislation dealing specifically with e-waste, March last year saw the promulgation of the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA), which regulates the disposal of toxic and hazardous waste.

Companies found guilty of illegally dumping hazardous or toxic waste, which includes e-waste, are liable for a R5 million fine or a ten-year prison sentence, or both. Moreover, they could be held liable for the clean-up of the relevant dumping site, which could escalate to millions of rands.

Although this legislation does provide an incentive for local companies to make use of e-waste disposal services, Werth admits that it has been slow-going since its launch. While African Sky`s volumes have grown from nothing to about a hundred tons of waste a month, this is still just a drop in the ocean.

"Although companies are faced with ever-tightening environmental standards, they are generally still governed by the perceived high costs of e-waste disposal, and the low risk of being investigated and penalized for not disposing of their e-waste in an environmentally-responsible manner," he maintains.

African Sky claims to be SA`s only e-waste specialist that is ISO 14 001 and ISO 9000 compliant, and registered with the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism and the Gauteng Department of Agriculture, Conservation, Environment and Land Affairs.

HOW IT WORKS

How the company works is that its Benoni facility is used as a collection and sorting point for e-waste. The e-waste is stripped down manually into four categories: ferrous and nonferrous metals, plastic, cables and electronics. Typically plastics, metal, aluminium and copper are disposed of locally, while components set for precious metal recovery (gold, silver, platinum and palladium, for example), monitors and other hazardous waste are shipped overseas for further processing.

Profit from the venture comes through melting down and selling of precious metals from the e-waste. African Sky has partnered with Noranda/Falconbridge, which have refineries in Canada and the US, for precious metal recovery from electronic components. It is for this reason that its new facility will be based at Coega, which is home to a port. Although local refineries exist, none are certified to handle e-waste, points out Werth.

While he declines to elaborate on the value of various components and the metals to be extracted from them, he explains that they are characterised as high-, medium-, low- and negative-yield. A computer monitor, for example, is a negative-yield product, as it yields no metals, precious or otherwise, and there is a cost involved in the safe disposal of its glass, plastics and toxins.

Electronic equipment contains a variety of toxic substances, such as lead (in computer circuit boards), mercury (switches and flat screens), chromium, cadmium (computer circuit boards), beryllium, barium brominates (computer monitor and TV cathode-ray tubes) and mixed plastics that could seep into the watertable if the equipment is disposed of in the natural environment, such as in landfill sites. Hence, African Sky has also partnered with a Chinese company specializing in e-waste processing.

Once the waste is processed, client companies receive a certificate of destruction. "As many company PCs contain valuable intellectual property, we guarantee that they are destroyed in a secure environment," continues Werth.

"Things have changed since the promulgation of NEMA e `green scorpions` (the law enforcement unit of the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism) verified our operation during the certification process. My feeling is, that over time, we will begin to see some real results, with companies being held accountable for the damage they inflict on the environment," he says.

Another trend, welcomed by Werth, is the European Community`s Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) directive, which forces electronics manufacturers to employ recycled materials in at least 60% of their product. The impact of this directive is felt globally, and will further encourage the recycling of e-waste, he maintains.