The world generated 62 million tonnes of e-waste in 2022 and is on track for 82 million by 2030. Less than a quarter is formally collected. Connectivity hardware is part of the problem and the solution.
The UN's Global E-waste Monitor 2024 put a stark number on the challenge: 62 million tonnes of electronic waste generated in 2022, rising to a projected 82 million tonnes by 2030. Collection is not keeping pace — the documented collection-and-recycling rate was 22.3% in 2022 and is forecast to fall to 20% by 2030 as generation outstrips recovery.
E-waste is not only a hazard; it is a resource. It contains copper, aluminium, gold, silver, palladium and rare-earth elements — materials for which, the Monitor notes, the world remains 'stunningly dependent' on a handful of countries. The report estimates that lifting collection and recycling to 60% by 2030 would generate benefits exceeding costs by more than US$38 billion.
Connectivity generates a steady stream of end-of-life hardware — network equipment, customer-premises devices, handsets and batteries. But the sector is also unusually well placed to manage it: assets are known, sited and often under contract, which makes structured recovery achievable in a way it rarely is for scattered consumer electronics.
The opportunity is to convert an unmanaged waste stream into a measured, monetised recovery programme — which begins with seeing the assets clearly.
When e-waste is not formally collected and processed, value is lost and harm rises. Informal processing can expose workers and communities to hazardous substances, while poor sorting destroys the ability to recover higher-value components. For telecom and IT equipment, low-grade recovery can also miss working units, usable modules and valuable boards that should have been separated earlier.
Unlike many consumer devices, much network equipment is already known to an owner, installed at known sites and removed through planned projects. That gives telecom operators a structural advantage. They can capture serialised assets at decommissioning, verify identity, route equipment intentionally and retain an evidence trail. Few sectors have as much control over the waste stream before it becomes waste.
E-waste education should not only tell teams that waste is bad. It should teach them how value is lost: missing identity, mixed pallets, unclear ownership, weak documentation and late decision-making. Once people understand those failure points, circularity becomes a set of operational controls rather than a slogan.
Many organisations report a single diversion or recycling rate, but this hides important differences. Reuse, refurbishment and repair preserve product value; recycling preserves material value; disposal preserves almost nothing. If all outcomes are collapsed into one metric, leadership cannot see whether the programme is moving up the circular hierarchy or simply moving waste through certified channels.
Telecom and IT companies should therefore report outcome quality, not only outcome volume. A smaller tonnage of high-value reused equipment may represent more economic and carbon benefit than a larger tonnage of low-grade recycling.
A responsible e-waste programme depends on downstream partners. Operators should know where assets go after the first buyer or recycler, what certifications apply, how materials are processed, and whether export rules are respected. This is not only risk management; it is the basis for credible reporting. A claim is only as strong as the chain behind it.
This article is provided for general information and does not constitute legal, regulatory, or financial advice. Regulatory timelines and requirements should be verified against the primary sources cited.
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