Despite signing the Basel Convention, many countries, including Canada, continue to export electronic waste to developing countries.
The Basel Action Network, or BAN, mentioned in a report that it started investigating Canada's electronic waste trade in 2002. The network proved that Canada illegally exported electronic waste, mainly from the Port of Vancouver to ports in Asia.
Furthermore, BAN stated that for over 10 years, it found the Electronic Recycling Association, or ERA, to be a constant and prolific Canadian exporter of electronic waste towards developing countries from three different locations in the Vancouver area of British Columbia. Over the years, BAN flagged those exports to Canadian authorities.
While companies like base metal smelters are telling us they have challenges due to the quantity of inputs, how are we to understand exports of electronic materials abroad?