Why in News- Government plans PLI Scheme to promote mineral recycling and circular economy.
UPSC Syllabus:
Prelims: Economy
Mains: GS-III: Economy, Environment
Scheme
- The Ministry of Mines is in the early stages of developing a production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme to enhance the recycling of critical minerals in India.
- The initiative aims to promote a circular economy and strengthen domestic supply chains while addressing the slow response to the recent critical mineral block auctions.
Battery Waste Management Rules (BWMR), 2022
- The Central Pollution Control Board notified the Battery Waste Management Rules (BWMR), 2022 to ensure environmentally sound management of waste batteries through Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) compliance.
- These rules mandate phased recycling of used electric vehicle (EV) lithium-ion batteries starting from 2026.
Key Features of Battery Waste Management Rules (BWMR), 2022
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR): Ensures proper waste management for battery producers of lithium, nickel, cobalt, and lead.
Compliance Mechanism: Producers can meet compliance by trading credits with recyclers.
Phased Recycling: Mandates a phased approach to recycling used EV lithium-ion batteries starting from 2026.
Critical Minerals
Critical minerals are essential elements that are crucial for building advanced technologies including clean energy systems, electronics, and defense applications.
These minerals include lithium, copper, cobalt, graphite, chromium, and silicon.
Importance of Critical Minerals
Clean Energy Technologies: Required for solar PV modules, wind turbines, and energy storage systems.
Consumer electronics: Used in the production of smartphones, laptops, and other electronic devices.
Industrial applications: Important for manufacturing processes in various industries.
Circular economy
- The circular economy is an economic system that aims to eliminate waste and use resources sustainably.
- It is in contrast to the traditional linear economy, which follows a ‘take, make, dispose’ model.
- A circular economy uses reuse, sharing, repair, refurbishment, remanufacturing, and recycling to create a closed-loop system, minimizing the use of resource inputs and reducing waste, pollution, and carbon emissions.
Principles Of Circular Economy
Designing out waste and pollution: Products are designed for longevity, reuse and recycling.
Keeping products and materials in use: Extending the life cycle of products through maintenance, repair and recycling.
Regenerating natural systems: Improve the environment by reducing waste and promoting sustainable practices.
Alignment with NITI Aayog recommendations
- The proposed PLI scheme is aligned with the policy recommendations of NITI Aayog, the government’s apex think tank.
- The scheme complements the BWMR, 2022, promoting recycling of used EV lithium-ion batteries and other critical minerals.
Targeting e-waste recycling
- The PLI scheme will focus on recycling e-waste, often referred to as “urban mining”, to recover critical minerals.
- This includes the extraction of high-purity minerals suitable for reuse as primary inputs and the production of black mass, which contains valuable minerals such as lithium, manganese, cobalt, and nickel.
Rise in e-waste generation
- India’s e-waste generation is expected to increase significantly, driven by the growth of solar and wind power infrastructure and EV adoption.
- Solar PV module waste is projected to grow from 100 kilotonnes (kt) in FY2023 to 340 kt by 2030.
- Additionally, 500 kilotonnes (kt) of EV batteries are projected to reach recycling units in the coming years.
Challenges and opportunities
- The need to encourage critical mineral recycling has become urgent after most of the critical mineral blocks offered by the Ministry of Mines failed to attract adequate technical bids.
- This reflects the lack of investor interest in domestic mining of critical minerals.
Importance of Recycling Important Minerals
Conservation of Natural Resources
- Recycling critical minerals reduces the need to extract raw ores, thereby conserving natural resources.
- It is essential for maintaining ecological balance and reducing the environmental impact of mining activities.
Economic Benefits
- Recycling critical minerals can reduce production costs and create new job opportunities in the recycling sector.
- It also helps stabilize the supply chain by reducing dependence on imported raw materials.
Environmental Protection
- Recycling reduces the environmental footprint associated with the mining and processing of raw materials.
- It reduces greenhouse gas emissions, energy consumption, and weight loss. Reduces land degradation.
Importance of Circular Economy for EV
Resource Efficiency
- A circular economy in the EV sector promotes the efficient use of materials by encouraging the reuse and recycling of components.
- This reduces the demand for new raw materials and reduces waste.
Reduced Environmental Impact
- By extending the lifecycle of EV components through repair, refurbishment, and recycling, a circular economy reduces the overall environmental impact.
- It helps reduce carbon emissions and reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills.
Economic Resilience
- A circular economy increases economic resilience by reducing dependence on unsustainable global supply chains.
- It promotes local recycling industries and creates sustainable business models.
The objective of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)
- Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is based on the polluter pays principle, making producers accountable for managing the waste generated by their products.
- It ensures that producers take responsibility for the entire lifecycle of their products, from design to disposal.
Encouraging Sustainable Practices
- Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) encourages producers to adopt sustainable practices, such as designing products that are easier to recycle and contain fewer hazardous materials.
- It promotes innovation in waste management and recycling technologies.
Compliance and Accountability
- Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) mandates compliance with waste management regulations, ensuring that producers meet specific recycling targets.
- This accountability improves the overall waste management infrastructure.
Challenges of Battery Waste Management Rule (BWMR)
Technological Barriers
- One of the major challenges of the Battery Waste Management Rule (BWMR) is the lack of advanced recycling technologies in India.
- Many recyclers cannot extract battery-grade minerals from e-waste, which hinders efficient recycling processes.
Lack of Infrastructure
- The recycling infrastructure in India is still evolving, with inadequate facilities and logistics to handle the growing volume of battery waste.
- This limits the effectiveness of the Battery Waste Management Rule (BWMR) in sustainably managing battery waste.
Compliance and Enforcement
- Ensuring compliance with Battery Waste Management Rule (BWMR) is challenging due to the informal nature of the recycling sector in India.
- Stringent enforcement mechanisms and support for formal recycling businesses are needed to improve compliance rates.
Economic viability
- The economic viability of recycling operations is a concern, as the costs associated with collecting, transporting, and processing e-waste can be high.
- Incentives and subsidies may be needed to make recycling financially attractive to businesses.