Another in a series of Industry Voices contributions
Currently, more than 50 million tonnes of e-waste are produced every year. E-waste is also the fastest growing waste stream in the world.
E-waste is a contributing factor that led the European Union (EU) to forward several measures to prioritize a circular economy and ensure the sustainability and traceability of electronics. The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), which is part of the Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP) -- set a framework of ‘ecodesign requirements for specific product groups to significantly improve their circularity…and other environmental sustainability aspects.’
The framework aims to ‘help consumers and businesses make more sustainable product choices’ and increase circularity in several industries, and it will focus on each aspect of a product’s makeup—everything from the process used to create it to the materials it contains, and its recyclable components.
To accomplish these goals, the ESPR is mandating the implementation of Digital Product Passports (DPP) on products that fall within specified groups.
Alongside electronics, DPP will include products in the furniture, textiles, and manufacturing industries, among others. In addition to businesses that operate and place products within the EU, any business in the US, UK, and any country outside of the region that is also placing products in the EU market will still need to comply.
Through the implementation of DPPs and the digital record they provide on a product’s lifecycle and credentials, the EU hopes to encourage manufacturers and producers to adopt more sustainable practices and inspire circular thinking past the point of manufacture. Crucially for the electronics industry, it will provide insight into the effective disposal of end-of-life (EOL) electronics, which is expected to encourage recycling and keeping materials in circularity.
While a specific date has yet to be set, the electronics industry is expected to be one of the first product groups addressed, so the industry will need to be prepared.
DPPs- The future of tackling e-waste
In essence, DPPs can act as a digital record of a physical product, securely keeping track of information across its lifecycle, including event or transactional data, or even data concerning its sustainability credentials-- for example, the carbon footprint of its production. Through a data carrier like a QR code, a barcode, or an NFC tag attached to a physical product, information can be accessed by a device such as a smartphone.
A major benefit of DPPs in tackling e-waste and ensuring we dispose of electronics correctly is the detailed disposal instructions they can provide specific to each product. This will largely help tackle issues relating to e-waste, ensuring EOL electronics are disposed of in an environmentally conscious manner.
Moreover, as mentioned previously, the hazardous components of certain electronics, such as lead or mercury, are concerns DPP’s enable us to tackle. By providing details on the complex composition of a product, they will enable hazardous items to be disposed of safely.
On a greater scale, DPPs provide an educational function, one which encourages the product’s producer and consumer to think about the overall lifecycle of a product, and its environmental impact to make more careful choices in purchasing and manufacturing processes.
The early stages of preparation
With the electronics industry earmarked as one of the priority industries for implementing DPPs, businesses should take steps now to ensure they are compliant with the upcoming legislation.
Details of the mandate are yet to be fully established, but the delegated acts of specific product groups and sectors are expected to be outlined in the coming months. This process highlights the need for businesses to start understanding the implications of the ESPR regulations and preparing organizations to align with the changes.
It also involves bringing together the right internal stakeholders and external partners to assess the current set-up of the business and its supply chain to determine the best next steps. After this step, companies should start to consider the different technology options to support a DPP integration strategy to ensure sustainability, security, and interoperability remain the driving priorities. In these initial stages, it is crucial that these first steps are approached with care and trusted partners are identified sooner to set the course for successful implementation.
The road to sustainability
The upcoming EU DPP mandate will prove a challenging journey for all businesses but will be vastly significant in achieving the EU’s environmental goals for a more circular economy. Alongside this, DPPs will provide the electronics industry with greater transparency, opening up more innovative conversations on cost optimization and placing electronics providers at the forefront of this environmental movement.
Lars Rensing is CEO of Protokol, a Web3 services provider focused on sustainability that is based in Amsterdam.