Japan — Electronics

Japan was one of the first countries to confront the overwhelming amount of hazardous electronic waste. With over 70% of electronic goods produced by Japanese manufacturers, it has been a testing ground for EPR programs.  

In 1998 Japan enacted the Specified Home Appliance Recycling Law (SHARL), which requires producers to take back television sets, refrigerators, air conditioners, and washing machines. The law requires recycling rates of between 50–60% by weight, which could be fulfilled by reusing and recycling product components. Due to the levels of lead and other hazardous materials in cathode ray tubes and printed circuit boards, Japan also enacted the Waste Treatment Law, which requires ‘environmentally sound’ treatment of these product components. However, Japan relies heavily on incineration and advocates continued use based on cost comparisons to material recycling.

For computers and other large scale appliances not covered by SHARL, Japan enacted the Reused Law for Promotion of Effective Utilization of Resources, which requires manufacturers of computers, copy machines, and large electrical home appliances to design for disassembly, recycling, and waste reduction and longevity of use (repair, reuse, and recycling). Recent revisions of the law mandate producer take back for business computers and appliances. Manufacturers can charge consumers for end-of-life waste management costs (collection, take back, and treatment).

Most Japanese EPR laws require physical take back for specified electronic goods allowing financial costs to be passed onto consumers. In contrast to European manufacturers who have relied more on collective recycling systems shared by many producers, individual Japanese manufacturers develop and manage their own recycling programs for their brand name products. As such, Japanese manufacturers have created stronger feedback loops between upstream and downstream actors.