Circular Economy: Recycling Waste to Wealth

The world is now under more pressure to become sustainable than ever before. Therefore, there is a need to immediately implement policies to ensure the conservation of natural resources, reduction of waste, and reduced fossil fuel use so that the rate of climate change can be positively altered. Many countries, including India, have set binding net zero targets to reduce carbon emissions and their impact on the environment. Despite the significant increase in awareness, the adoption of circular economy practices has been a key challenge. We are still increasingly relying on materials from virgin sources. It is estimated that in 2023 only ~7% of all material inputs put back into the global economy are from secondary materials that are recycled into use. It was estimated that the percentage of materials recycled back into the economy in 2018 was ~9%, and hence it is clear that circularity has seen a gradual decline globally over the last five years. Therefore, bolder initiatives and commitments to execute those initiatives are the need of the hour.

The size of the Indian plastic waste recycling industry was estimated to be USD 2.3 billion in FY23. The industry is expected to grow at a CAGR of 24% and reach USD 10.2 billion by FY30. In India, data on plastic waste and its recycling rates is not well documented. However, it is estimated that around 13 million tonnes of plastic waste is generated and 60% of it is recycled. The remaining waste suffers mismanagement, i.e. it ends up in dumpsites and landfills, or is burned - all of which contaminate the environment. Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has increased its focus on monitoring and has recently introduced a web portal to track plastics produced by registered companies and the category-wise EPR requirements.
 

The total e-waste generated globally is estimated at ~59 million MT in the year 2022, and only about ~18% of this is recycled. It is estimated that this e-waste contains approximately USD 60 billion worth of raw materials such as gold, silver, copper, platinum, and other recoverable materials. The rapid growth of technology has resulted in electronics being a very essential part of our daily lives. The consumer electronics market continues to see a phenomenal rise and the average Indian consumer today is purchasing more electronic appliances and technologically advanced ‘smart products’. Further, electronic devices are now associated with social identity and status, and this leads to a higher desire to replace electronics faster, even while they are still functional. The government is taking many steps to increase the recycling rates of e-waste, such as expanding the scope of items covered under regulations, enabling a system for online EPR authorization and processing, tracking and movement of e-waste, real-time report generation.
 

India is going to see a big energy transformation because of the move towards a low-carbon economy. Li-ion batteries are at the center of it because of their use in vehicles to reduce pollution and they act as the storage solution for renewable energy sources. At the same time, battery recycling becomes even more critical in India as there is a lack of key raw materials. However, significant growth in the market is only expected in the latter half of the current decade, with sizable volumes of used batteries currently going into the vehicles coming to the market. Leveraging a larger global opportunity and repurposing opportunity will be critical in the near term. Repurposing is going to play a key role in extending the life of batteries, increasing battery usage, and increasing the value proposition for recycling companies.
 

A large addressable market for the products proposed to be recycled, both in terms of feedstock and demand for the end products. Earlier some of the recyclers were focused on low-tech mechanical processes such as crushing and separation via magnets or washing and smelting of e-waste or processing only till black mass in the case of batteries. Global economic development has advanced together with material use, and natural assets remain the key foundation of our prosperity and well-being. Governments have realized that given the limited resources, there is a need to find a sustainable way forward.