The concept of extended producer responsibility in the electronic waste management system

There is an undeniable negative impact on the environment of various kinds of waste generated as a result of the disposal of exhausted electrical and electronic devices. Among these wastes, a special place is occupied by electronic waste, which has a significant content of expensive rare earth metals in its composition, which, moreover, with proper processing and subsequent reuse, can bring significant savings. Based on the study conducted by the authors, it was revealed that in many developed countries, various directives have been developed and used at the level of state legislation, not only obliging commodity producers to steadily reduce the proportion of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment, but also to ensure competent disposal and processing of products to ensure the reuse of limited natural resources. The principle of extended producer responsibility, set out in the article, begins to play a special role. For our country, this principle is also becoming particularly relevant not only because of the need to save money, but also because of the increasing volume of sanctions that prohibit the transfer of many modern technologies, especially in the field of electrical engineering, electronics and microprocessor engineering. Based on the materials presented and analyzed, the authors have formulated the main conclusions that when implementing the concept of extended manufacturer's responsibility, first of all, the specific features of national legislation related to the use of hazardous components in electrical and electronic equipment, as well as the need for proper organization of safe processing (disposal) of electronic waste should be taken into account.