René Bernardo Elías Cabrera-Cruz^1*, María Esther Bautista-Vargas¹, Julio César Rolón-Aguilar¹, Ricardo Tobías-Jaramillo¹, Alberto José Gordillo-Martínez²

Show more
¹ Division of Postgraduate Studies and Research, Faculty of Engineering “Arturo Narro Siller”, Autonomous University of Tamaulipas, Tamaulipas, Mexico.
² Center for Chemical Research, Autonomous University of the State of Hidalgo, Pachuca, Mexico.
Show less

Abstract: Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) has brought negative effects to the environment produced by the materials that compose them. The proper implementation of management plans of WEEE should integrate measures to prevent, mitigate and correct these affectations. As an initial step, it is necessary to make a diagnosis of the current situation of WEEE management which is the objective of this work. The studied zone was composed by the municipalities of Tampico, Ciudad Madero and Altamira located in southeast Tamaulipas, Mexico. The descriptive analysis of technical and regulatory aspects of the current management system in the study area was developed, including generation rates and analysis of waste streams. Among the main results, the generation of WEEE was estimated in 2040.38 tons/year for 2013, distributed in the municipalities of Tampico with 830.93 tons/year, Altamira with 650.18 tons/year, and Ciudad Madero with 559.27 tons/year. This calculation was estimated using Mexico’s WEEE generation indicators. The analysis of waste streams includes five categories of WEEE, Televisions with 61% of the total generation, followed by sound devices with 18%, personal computers with 17%; mobile phones with 2% as well as fixed phones with 1%. In the study area, reports of Tampico’s municipality indicated that 96 tons of WEEE was collected in the city of Tampico in 2013. In México, the national legislation considers WEEE in the category of waste requiring special handling (WRSH), however, it exists an inadequacy in the environmental laws about the specific classification of this kind of debris that makes their effective management more difficult. No companies who provide a management or treatment operations for WEEE are reported in Tampico, or in the near region. In addition, despite an initial interest for the municipality to attend the WEEE problematic, it exists a lack of sensibility of the population in the absence of environmental education programs.

Keywords: WEEE, Management, Tampico, EIA

Cite this paper: Cabrera-Cruz, R. , Bautista-Vargas, M. , Rolón-Aguilar, J. , Tobías-Jaramillo, R. and Gordillo-Martínez, A. (2014) Perspectives of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment in Tampico, Mexico. Journal of Environmental Protection, 5, 1266-1276. doi: 10.4236/jep.2014.512120.

References

[1]   Vega, O. (2012) Side Effects of Technological Obsolescence. Journal Faculty of Engineering, Pedagogic and Technological University of Colombia (UPTC), 21, 55-62.

[2]   Cassia R.A., Moraes F.P.J. and Andrade G.R. (2006) The Growth of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment out of Use: The Environmental Impact They Represent. Journal of Engineering and Environmental Sciences: Research, Development and Practice, 1, 1-12.

[3]   Ojeda-Benitez, S., Cruz-Sotelo, S.E., Velazquez, L., Santillan-Soto, N., Nunez, M.Q., Cueto, O.R.G. andMarkus, W. (2013) Electrical and Electronic Waste in Northwest Mexico. Journal of Environmental Protection, 4, 405-410.
http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/jep.2013.45048

[4]   Ibrahim, F.B., Adie, D.B., Giwa, A.R., Abdullahi, S.A. and Okuofu, C.A. (2013) Material Flow Analysis of Electronic Wastes (E-Wastes) in Lagos, Nigeria. Journal of Environmental Protection, 4, 1011-1017.
http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/jep.2013.49117

[5]   Boeni, H., Silva, U. and Ott, D. (2008) E-Waste Recycling in Latin America: Overview, Challenges and Potential. Proceedings of the Global Symposium on Recycling, Waste Treatment and Clean Technology (REWAS 2008), Cancun, 12-15 October 2008, 1-10.
http://www.ewasteguide.info/2008_Keynote_Boeni_REWAS

[6]   Gavilan, A. (2011) Current Status of WEEE management in Mexico. Proceedings of Conference of the Parties to the Basel Convention, Cartagena, 17-21 October 2011, 4 p.

[7]   Grant, K., Goldizen, F.C., Sly, P.D., Brune, M.N., Neira, M., van den Berg, M. and Norman, R.E. (2013) Health Consequences of Exposure to E-Waste: A Systematic Review. The Lancet Global Health, 1, e350-e361.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S2214-109X(13)70101-3

[8]   Maheshwari, R.K., Rani, B. and Singh, U. (2013) Dribble of E-Waste: It’s Impact on Human Health & Management Strategies for Sustainable Development. Research Journal of Chemical and Environmental Sciences, 1, 3-16.

[9]   Zhang, K., Schnoor, J. and Zeng, E. (2012) E-Waste Recycling: Where Does It Go from Here? American Chemical Society; Environmental Science & Technology, 46, 10861-10867.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/es303166s

[10]   Boeni, H., Silva, U. and Ott, D. (2009) Electronic Waste Recycling in Latin America. Overview, Challenges and Potential. In: Silva, U., Ed., Electronic Waste Management in Latin America, Ediciones Sur/Plataforma Relac Sur/Idrc, Santiago, 51-66.
http://www.web-resol.org/cartilha14/gestion_de_residuos_en_america_latina.pdf

[11]   Gavilan-Garcia, A., Alcantara-Concepcion, V. and Gavilan-Garcia, I. (2012) Life Cycle Analysis of Alternatives for the Management of Electronic Waste in Mexico. Proceedings of V Congress of the Mesoamerican Association of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology (AMEQA), Aguascalientes, 25-28 July 2012, CD-ROM.

[12]   OECD (2012) OECD Internet Economy Outlook 2012. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD Publishing, Paris, 296.

[13]   DOF (1991) Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal. Official Gazette, Mexico City.

[14]   DOF (2004) Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants. Official Gazette, Mexico City.

[15]   Babu, B.R., Parande, A.K. and Basha, C.A. (2007) Electrical and Electronic Waste: A Global Environmental Problem. Waste Management & Research, 25, 307-318.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0734242X07076941

[16]   Skinner, A., Dinter, Y., Lloyd, A. and Strothmann, P. (2010) The Challenges of E-Waste Management in India: Can India Draw Lessons from the EU and the USA? ASIEN, 117, 7-26.

[17]   Zoeteman, B.C., Krikke, H.R. and Venselaar, J. (2010) Handling WEEE Waste Flows: On the Effectiveness of Producer Responsibility in a Globalizing World. The International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology, 47, 415-436.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00170-009-2358-3

[18]   DOF (2003) Decree on the General Law for the Prevention and Management of Waste, Official Gazette, 8 October 2003. Publisher Renovation, Mexico City, 7 June 2013.

[19]   NOM-161-SEMARNAT-2011 (2013) Establishing the Criteria for Classifying Special Waste Handling and Determine Which Are Subject to the Management Plan; the Listing of Them, the Procedure for the Inclusion or Exclusion to That List; as Well as the Elements and Procedures for the Formulation of Management Plans. Official Mexican Standard. Official Journal.

[20]   CONAPO (2013) Population Projections 2010-2050: From the Municipalities of Mexico from 2010 to 2030. National Population Council.
http://www.conapo.gob.mx/

[21]   PMOT (2011) Metropolitan Land Management Program of Altamira-Ciudad Madero, Tampico.
http://www.imeplansurdetamaulipas.gob.mx/POT_Metropolitano.htm

[22]   Armstrong J.S. and Collopy, F. (1993) Causal Forces: Structuring Knowledge for Time-Series Extrapolation. Journal of Forecasting, 12, 103-115.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/for.3980120205

[23]   Armstrong, J.S., Collopy, F. and Yokum, J.T. (2004) Decomposition by Causal Forces: A Procedure for Forecasting Complex Time Series.
http://www.forecastingprinciples.com/paperpdf/Decomposition%20by%20Causal%20Forces.pdf

[24]   Moguel, G.J.R. (2007) Diagnosis of E-Waste Generation in Mexico. National Polytechnic Institute, Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Studies on Environment and Development and the National Institute of Ecology. Mexico City.
http://www.inecc.gob.mx/descargas/diag_basura_electronica.pdf

[25]   Acevedo, J., Rivas, E. and Carrillo, O. (2008) Diagnosis of Regional E-Waste Generation at the End of Its Useful Life in the Northeast Region of Mexico. Contract No INE/I3P-012/2007. INE-SEMARNAT y Center for Environmental Quality ITESM, Monterrey.
http://www.inecc.gob.mx/descargas/sqre/res_electronicos_noreste_reporte_final.pdf

[26]   The Standard for Material Flow Analysis (2012) Copyright by Institute for Water Quality, Resource and Waste Management. Vienna University of Technology, Vienna.
http://www.stan2web.net/NetHelp/default.htm?turl=HTMLDocuments%2FInstall.htm

[27]   Cencic, O. and Rechberger, H. (2008) Material Flow Analysis with Software STAN. Journal of Environmental Engineering and Management, 18, 3.

[28]   NOM-192-SCFI/SCT1-2013 (2013) Telecommunications Television and decoders Specifications. Official Mexican Standard. Official Journal.