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3 December 2021: With volumes of E-Waste rising to 435,187 tons, only 10% of the waste makes it to recycling of the correct standard. What that means, is that the rest of the e-Waste is having a major impact on the environment as an invisible risk to health with its persistence and toxic chemical residues. AIS is one private sector corporation building awareness about the impacts of incorrectly processed E-Waste, while teaming up with partners in every sector, both state and private, to both spread the word and add alternative channels to dispose of electronic waste to internationally-certified standards. Most recently, AIS has teamed up with Toyota Motor Thailand, a member of the Thailand Business Council for Sustainable Development (TBSCD). This is composed of business corporations in Thailand leading sustainable development, with over 40 member organizations including AIS.

The two companies have the joint objective of environmental operations and campaigning for sustainable solutions to E-Waste, both in setting up drop-off points and collecting Toyota’s own office waste, and establishing a Value Chain for the recycling process, from separating waste categories, disposal, selecting, recycling and destroying to finish with reusable raw materials. The has also been the launch of collaboration with Toyota Motor Thailand’s partner, Waste Management Siam Co., Ltd. (WMS), a leader in all categories of waste management which has the clear mission to be part of Thailand’s environmental conservation. DOWA Eco System Ltd., WMS’ Japanese parent, has been providing know-how from its experience of developing waste management technology for over 140 years, to enhance the disposal efficiency of E-waste collected by the program, which enters an internationally certified Eco Friendly recycling process. The focus is on cooperation in preparing electronic waste for the recycling process with WMS’ Fixed Combustion Furnace relying on Japanese gasification technology. This disposes of the remaining hazardous chemicals appropriately, and minimizes the environmental impact of incineration.

This furnace is just one part of the program “Complete used hybrid vehicle battery management” established by Toyota and its partners in 2019. This is laying the foundations of the circular economy with lifetime management of products by creating a system to manage used hybrid batteries. This runs from storage and quality evaluation to the recycling process yielding the greatest benefits, under the principles of Reuse, Recycle and Rebuild. Toyota has partnered with Waste Management Siam to melt batteries to obtain metals for further recycling. The program is not limited to cooperation on used hybrid batteries from car manufacturers, but is open to support other businesses with every kind of battery.

Saichon Submakudom, Head of Public Relations at AIS commented, “The continuity of our Thais Say No to E-waste Program has enabled AIS to collaborate with many different sectors who have the same objectives. It is building strong partnerships to improve the End-to-End E-waste management process. This includes raising awareness of the issues and the impacts of E-waste alongside organizing drop-off points nationwide, and taking it from there to the certified E-waste disposal management process, counting a total 240,125 items of waste at the end of October 2021. It must be considered a big step forward to cooperate with partners like Toyota, a leader in the automotive market who has given priority to environmental campaigning, and Waste Management Siam, who are worldwide specialists with long experience in applying technology to waste management. These partners enhance our capabilities in managing E-waste which we have collected from the general public, in line with our targets of Zero Landfill recycling to internationally-certified standards.”

Nantawat Srirachakul, acting vice president of Toyota Motor Thailand, noted, “The Toyota group of companies around the world are committed to conducting their business alongside building the Carbon Neutrality Society. A key mechanism is management of the product throughout its life cycle. Toyota Motor Thailand has collaborated with every sector in its supply chain and other business partners to innovate and lay the foundations to meet these targets. One existing program is “Complete used hybrid vehicle battery management”. This is not just for used hybrid vehicle batteries from auto manufacturers, but open to service customers from other industries. This in turn has led to cooperation in electronic waste disposal with AIS, who are another large organization with the vision to create an environmental balance in society, for the sustainable growth of business operations.”

Mr Hiromitsu Takaki, Executive Director of Waste Management Siam Co., Ltd added, “We provide the services of all categories of waste management which is friendly to the environment, and compliant with Thai regulations and international waste management standards. Most particularly, the matter of electronic waste is a new phenomenon which may be overlooked by people unaware of its severe impact on health and the environment. Collaborating with AIS and Toyota on this occasion is an important start to building awareness about this matter among the Thai public. Of course, we want to be part of creating the most efficient Value Chain in the E-waste management process. We can exploit our 140 years of experience in Japan managing E-waste in an environmentally friendly way, to create the Recycle-Oriented Society.”

Saichon concluded, “We try to give Thai people insight into the electronic waste management process, from the starting point to responsible disposal and recycling. Now, various stages of the process have begun to expand and become more efficient with the power of partners in various fields who share our ideals. Of course, we have set targets for our environmental work, as a private sector company ready to collaborate with every sector to address the country’s issues of electronic waste in every dimension.”

With Thailand’s Environment Day coming up on 4 December, the “Thais Say No to E-waste” program invites all Thai people to join in disposing of their electronic waste responsibly at AIS drop-off points nationwide, and even enter a draw to win 22 5G smartphones in the AIS E-waste campaign. Take a detailed look at AIS’ E-waste management process from drop-off to recycling here.