E Waste Management Market Size, Share & Growth | Report 2031

Report Description

E-waste Management Market Outlook 2031

The global e-waste management market size was valued at USD 57,027.84 Million in 2022 and is expected to surpass USD 1,86,920.84 Million by 2031, expanding at a CAGR of 14.1% during the forecast period, 2023–2031. The growth of the market is attributed to the need to use recycling materials for electronics production and the growing demand for e-waste management software.

E-waste or electronic waste is described as those electronic or electrical items that are no longer useful for active usage, termed obsolete electronic products. 

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The increasing demand for electronic equipment is leading to a higher amount of e-waste as well. According to research, around 32% of small electronic equipment including cameras and microwaves, and 24% of large equipment such as washing machines and others leads to generating e-waste.

E-waste management helps provide job opportunities for people as it is difficult for people to separate reusable and non-reusable waste properly, leading to a surge in the e-waste management market. 

• For instance, according to an estimation from United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) 2023, around 225,000 jobs are expected to create to repair used EEE and collect and pre-treatment of e-waste.

Over the years, a huge pile of several electronic items such as TVs, fax machines, phones, video cameras, keyboards, circuit boards, lamps, clocks, and MP3s, DVDs, or CD players is discarded every year after use.

These discarded items are put under the recycling process to retrieve precious metals such as gold, aluminum, silver, platinum, lead, and tin, which are key components or ingredients for manufacturing consumer electronic and IT communication gadgets.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic posed a threat to the expansion of the market due to the lack of laborers and the shutdown of recycling factories, impacted by the emergency lockdown.

The imposition of social distancing and movement restrictions by governments in a view to curb the virus spread and the disruption in the supply chain system in the market act as vital factors hindering the market during the pandemic.

On the other hand, the wide adoption of work from home (WFH) policy by several business organizations has boosted the demand for consumer electronic products such as laptops or smartphones, thereby, creating several opportunities for the market in the coming years.

As per several reports, more than 60% of companies based in Europe have prepared plans to implement a permanent policy for WFH in the near future. 

E-Waste Management Market Dynamics

Major Drivers

E-waste management focuses on reducing the waste from landfills which is expected to boost the market. More amount of waste leads to environmental pollution thus it is necessary for e-waste management systems to take steps for removing waste and recovering important materials for reusing them.

The recycled items obtained from e-waste management, are cheaper than the ones acquire from mining. This in turn helps in reducing manufacturing costs thus reducing the cost of the product.

Furthermore, it helps industries to be more mindful of environmental pollution and waste management. Recycling e-waste items help in reducing the overall carbon footprint globally, thereby, shaping a robust path for a sustainable environment.

• For instance, in September 2022, Samsung announced its new environmental strategy to tackle climate change. This strategy involves using more renewable energy, expanding e-waste collection, and reducing pollution.

Existing Restraints

Lack of public awareness of e-waste is expected to restrain the market. E-waste causes a negative impact on the environment as well as on human health. According to an analysis from Uswitch the e-waste related to IT and telecommunication has nearly doubled from 2008 which was 19,053 tonnes to 37,631 tonnes estimated by 2022. The trend is expected to continue to 55,000 tonnes by 2030, thus rising number of e-waste is expected to restrain the market.  

Emerging Opportunities

Growing importance regarding e-waste management along with its digital implementation is expected to create lucrative opportunities for the market players. Advancements in technology for tracking and optimizing waste collection and providing real-time data are increasing the demand for e-waste management software.

• For instance, in March 2022, an international recycling leader in waste management Terracycle and Evreka a sustainable service company specializing in waste management deployed a new waste management system. The e-waste software functions by providing real-time tracking of all waste movements and provides optimization of data that will change the waste collection for waste streams of TerraCycle.

Scope of E-Waste Management Market Report

The market report includes an assessment of the market, trends, segments, and regional markets. Overview and dynamics have also been included in the report.

E-Waste Management Market Segment Insights

Processed Material Segment Analysis

Based on processed material, the global e-waste management market is divided into metal, plastic, glass, and others. The metal segment held a large market share in 2021 and is expected to expand at a rapid pace with a CAGR of 4.2% during the forecast period due to the high use of metal as a vital ingredient for the manufacturing of the majority of electronic and electrical devices.

Moreover, the recycling process is mainly aimed to extract or retrieve more metal, which is scarcely available and the use of effective methods for restoring metal from discarded electronic products presents a key advantage in the market competition.

On the other hand, the plastic segment is anticipated to account for a key market share in the coming years. In e-waste management plastic is expected to create several challenges as some plastic materials are not easily recyclable and create environmental pollution.

The E-waste management system provides various solutions to reduce such issues such as increasing the use of bioplastics to lower the risk of environmental pollution and others.

Application Segment Analysis

In terms of application, the market is bifurcated into recycling and disposal. The recycling segment is anticipated to register a CAGR of 3.3% during the forecast period.

Favorable government policies and initiatives encourage the development of advanced and effective recycling techniques or methods which contributes to the segment growth.

Moreover, several key global IT players including Dell, HP, and Microsoft have largely participated by entering into collaboration with recycling companies to expand the reuse of discarded electronic items.

As the world is entering into a realm of a sustainable environment, the use of sustainable products for manufacturing electronic gadgets helps in reducing carbon emissions.

• For instance, in September 2022, Goodwill started a partnership with Dell Reconnect for the recycling of electronics. Dell Reconnect works on recycling various brands of monitors, printers, and computers and reportedly made 125 different products with recycled materials.

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Waste Source Type Segment Analysis

On the basis of waste source type, the global e-waste management market is segregated into consumer electronics, industrial electronics, cell phone batteries & button cells, and domestic appliance medical equipment & materials.

The consumer electronics segment constituted a major market share in 2021 and is projected to register a high CAGR during the forecast period owing to the massive use of electronic items for personal and household use.

Consumer electronics include personal assistance gadgets, household smart appliances, and IT accessories. The massive growth of both commercial and residential spaces paves the way for increasing the use of smart home appliances, which presents a key factor boosting the segment.

On the other hand, the industrial electronics segment is anticipated to account for a key market share in the coming years owing to the rapid expansion of the IT & telecom and healthcare industry.

Several existing or old IT devices and medical equipment had to be dumped as these devices required constant upgrades and replaced with innovative tools to ensure the best result or convenience for the use of consumers or patients.

Regional Analysis

In terms of region, the e-waste management market share is classified as Asia Pacific, North America, Latin America, Europe, and Middle East & Africa. North America is expected to constitute a key market share during the projected period owing to early acceptance of advanced recycling technology and wide acceptance of e-waste management solutions.

Moreover, strict government regulations towards carbon emission reduction and government initiatives for companies associated with effective recycled methods for rare materials present another key dimension of the regional market expansion.

On the other hand, the market of Asia Pacific is anticipated to expand at a robust growth rate during the forecast period owing to the presence of many consumers for electronic items and rising spending on smart electronic devices for personal use. 

The presence of many consumers for electronic items and rising spending on smart electronic devices for personal use are contributing to the market in the region. Moreover, the growing number of recycling activities in the region is expected to boost the market in the region.

• For instance, According to United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Sustainable Cycle (SCYCLE) Programme 2023, 99.9% of e-waste is unmanaged among them many other materials could be recycled by 2050.