However, in the absence of a national agenda to reduce toxic materials in electronics, gaps persist in regional policies that may confuse manufacturers and consumers, prolonging potential human and environmental exposure to detrimental effects of hazardous e-waste. The RoHS Directive restricts the use of six hazardous materials including lead in the manufacture of various types of electronic and electrical equipment, whereas the WEEE Directive sets collection, recycling, and recovery targets for electrical products, Japan, China, and South Korea are also promoting similar legislation to limit the lead content of e-waste.Ĭurrently, the USA does not have national legislation restricting lead-containing solders in electronics, although some states have made progress on legislation to restrict substances in electronic products. In response to the threats posed by lead to environmental quality and human health, the European Union implemented Directives 2002/95/EC (Restriction of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment RoHS) and 2002/96/EC (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment WEEE) effective July 1, 2006. Evidence from Europe suggests that it is the fastest-growing lead-containing hazardous waste category, and concern about the potential environmental impact has resulted in targeted lead phase-out initiatives and innovation in the electronics assembly industry. The results provide the first systematic framework that accounts for environmental impact, technological challenge, and business strategy concurrently toward formulating a comprehensive national policy for materials selection in electronic products.Įlectronic waste (e-waste) contains a wide variety of heavy metals including lead. A statistical model of corporate behavior is also presented. We use a modified fuzzy Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution approach to evaluate technical criteria dominance in declared preferences. We use a modified life cycle impact assessment method based on endpoint modeling approach to derive weighting factors that represent the respondents’ value system for tradeoffs among environmental impacts. The results reveal that 70% of these companies have already adopted lead-free solder for electronics with 49% of the total preferring the SnAgCu formulation, despite uncertainties associated with environmental impacts of this alternative alloy. To understand corporate responses to policy differences across jurisdictions, we conducted a structured-questionnaire survey of individuals in 109 companies that are representative of the US electronics industry. In contrast, the USA has no comparable national policy on these products. The European Union’s Restriction on the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances (Directive 2002/95/EC) targeted at electronic products took effect in 2006.
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