When old isn’t gold, just iron

While India tries to put in place end-of-life-vehicle (ELV) recycling systems, there are several countries from which it could adapt a few ideas. The India situation in this regard is humongous. Going by GIZ/Siam figures for 2015, there were 87.31 lakh vehicles that needed to be treated as ELVs. This figure has been steadily increasing and has already reached proportions that need immediate action.

An international comparative study on ELV management systems, supported by the Japanese government, found that several countries are already following established systems for dismantling and recycling used vehicles.

The European Union enacted legislation in 2000. This was aimed at not only disposal of wastes from automobiles but also enhancing people’s environment-consciousness by promoting re-use, recycling and collection of ELVs and their components. The directive set recycling targets for different phases and member countries were required to meet these targets. It requires car manufacturers and importers to shoulder the expense of recycling under the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), with their targets increasing every year.

In Japan, a law for recycling of ELVs came into being in 2005. The legislation is comprehensive, setting down appropriate roles among all the stakeholders. For instance, the Act specifies components to be recycled and determines targets separately for air bags, refrigerant gas and automobile shredding residue (ASR).

It also specifies an environmentally sound treatment of the fluorocarbons as required by law. While car manufacturers and importers are responsible for this, recycling fees is paid by the buyer of the vehicle at the time of purchase. The fees is deposited into a deposit management entity to ensure implementation at every step of the process.

In Korea, a vehicle manufacturing hub, legislation was enforced in 2008. Though the Korean government had been employing EPR earlier as well, the Act enhanced the policy through the introduction of an Eco-Assurance System. This requires both preventive and follow-up management so that products have both an environment-friendly design at the manufacturing stage and an environmentally-sound management of waste at the end of life.

The Chinese enacted legislation in 2001. They first established an ELV collection system to prevent accidents caused by the use of refurbished or over-age vehicles. Over the years they have also set up recycling targets.

In India, it is the informal sector that drives ELV recycling. While an ELV system has been discussed by the government since 2015 and several consultations have been carried out, no concrete action has seen the light of day.

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