E-waste reduction iniciatives

At a recent White House working meeting, US President Joe Biden formally endorsed consumers' right to repair their e-equipment. The support expressed is in line with the Executive Order on Competitiveness in the US Economy of July 2021. Biden believes that this will reduce the cost of repairs and save consumers money. Sam admits that he turns to his daughter when he has problems with the phone and that he has no idea how consumers would carry out repairs themselves. However, in the mentioned executive order, it recognized the restrictions of manufacturers in self-repairs and repairs of third parties, which makes repairs more expensive and time-consuming. Restrictions include spare parts distribution, diagnostics, and repair tools. The executive order calls on the Federal Trade Commission to issue rules to release competition restrictions for independent workshops.

The European Union has launched the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive in this area, i.e. Eco-design and ErP directive, which seek to reduce consumption and dependence on imports of raw materials. France passed the Anti-Waste Act for the circular economy in 2020, and by 2021 some French companies have had to show a repairability assessment for smartphones, laptops, televisions, washing machines and lawn mowers. It is about t.i. repairability index. The UK introduced the Right to Repair e-Equipment Act in July 2021, where spare parts for dishwashers, washing machines, washer-dryers, refrigerators, televisions and electronic screens must be available for 10 years. The German "traffic light coalition" wrote in the coalition agreement that they are committed to the durability and repairability of products, access to spare parts and repair instructions. Until now, the German circular economy was based on recycling, but now they recognize repair as a key foundation of the circular economy.

Big companies are also involved - Apple has launched Self-Service Repairs, where consumers have instructions, tools and spare parts for the iPhone 12 and 13, and Microsoft has released a video showing the ease of replacing individual modules of their laptop for schoolchildren.

Vir: Svetovni ekonomski forum, Bela hiša, EK, Connexion