LETTER | The Department of Environment (DOE)’s announcement to auction off 15,764.90 tons of seized e-waste valued at RM55 million raises several concerns and questions about Malaysia’s stance on e-waste processing, particularly the processing of imported e-waste.
Let’s analyse the implications of this move. The DOE’s recent stance on e-waste management reveals troubling inconsistencies that demand public scrutiny.
While claiming environmental protection as the basis for banning e-waste imports, the DOE now permits domestic recycling facilities to process local e-waste with minimal transparency about their environmental safeguards.
This policy presents two glaring contradictions:
1. Environmental protection or environmental risk?
If these domestic facilities can safely process e-waste without environmental contamination, why was this capability not acknowledged during the import ban discussions?
Conversely, if environmental concerns are genuine enough to justify an import ban, how can the DOE now endorse domestic processing without demonstrating enhanced safety protocols?
2. Economic viability vs artificial constraints
The DOE’s import ban effectively undermined the economic sustainability of advanced recycling facilities that require sufficient processing volume. Yet these same facilities are now deemed suitable for domestic e-waste processing.
This raises serious questions about whether environmental protection is truly the primary motivation, or if other undisclosed factors influenced this policy shift.
The DOE’s contradictory approach has created a paradoxical situation where:
They claim to protect the environment while potentially exposing it to greater risk through less scrutinised domestic processing.
They advocate for proper e-waste management while implementing policies that make state-of-the-art recycling facilities economically unviable.
They promote environmental sustainability while hindering the very technological investments needed to achieve it.
This policy incoherence suggests either a concerning lack of strategic planning or more troublingly, potential motivation beyond environmental protection.
The DOE must provide clear, evidence-based explanations for these contradictions to maintain public trust and ensure Malaysia’s e-waste management aligns with genuine environmental and economic sustainability goals.
The current situation demands immediate clarification: What changed between the import ban and now? What environmental safeguards are in place?
And most critically, how does this shifting policy serve Malaysia's long-term environmental interests?
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.
