Personal Computer Waste Management Process in Taiwan via System Dynamics Perspective

An excess of 40 million tons of electronic waste (e-waste) were disposed globally in 2008, including waste from personal computers, CRT monitors and cell phones. E-waste problem can be expected emergency but a dynamic complex problem because the recycling willingness of end-users may be influenced by various factors. This investigation attempts to develop a waste management model of personal computer recycling from a systematical perspective. The proposed model collects the influences variables from previous research to construct entire waste management process and adjust relative parameter from simulation result. The experimental results demonstrate above 90% accuracy rate and reveal some interesting finding such as the recycling delay time and recycling rate. The proposed model enables electronic producers to experience the entire PC recycling cycle through a systematic perspective, and enables the government to simulate recycle refund policy before actual implementation.