With Apple changing its iPhones from Lightning to USB connectors next year, e-waste is set to be reduced. Experts however call for further steps, as the recycling process of electronics continues to be challenging.

At the DRZ recycling center in Vienna, Wojciech Mroz dismantles cables to separate metals from plastics. "What we need is inside the cables – copper," he says. "That's what makes the most money."

While copper is re-used and sold for 8 dollars per kilogram, the plastic mantle is often not recycled but incinerated. This is why the European Union wants to tackle the e-waste problem at the source, by establishing one standard charging cable for all phones, which will stop Apple using its iPhone lightning connector in the bloc.

The EU says a unified charging cable will reduce e-waste and empower consumers to make more sustainable choices. Apple, on the other hand, says strict regulation mandating just one type of connector stifles innovation rather than encouraging it.

According to UN data, European households own on average 74 electronic products, 13 of which are lying unused in drawers and closets. "I have boxes and boxes with different cables from all the phones I have for the last 15 years," Zurich resident Thaddäus tells CGTN, while Vienna resident Miriam adds: "If there is one standardized cable,  there will be less waste."

The EU must go further than only regulating chargers, says Stefan Salhofer from the institute of waste management at Vienna's BOKU university. The professor calls for less hazardous elements in electronics, as flame retardants in the cable's plastic mantle cause difficulties during the recycling process. 

"First it needs to identify those flame retardants – some of them are toxic," he says. "Then this needs further separation." Due to this complex process, only a few cables are completely recycled.

Although only an EU rule, it is likely to affect other countries. "Because no manufacturer is likely to produce a special solution for the European market alone, the de facto global standard for charging cables will be USB-C from 2024, said Bernhard Rohleder, CEO of Bitkom – the industry association for the German information and telecommunications sector.

“The political commitment to a technical standard will above all slow down innovations and runs massively counter to the important principle of technological openness. Innovations, for example in charging duration or data transmission, are thus being slowed down politically – to the detriment of consumers," Rohleder added. 

"Manufacturers have long been much further ahead than politicians: inductive, wireless charging based on the manufacturer-independent Qi standard is becoming more and more widespread."

While the EU's standard phone charger regulation comes into force by the end of next year, rumors say Apple might bypass the law by introducing a Lightning-like authenticator chip in its USB-C cables, potentially limiting their functionality with Apple-unapproved accessories. So in the end we might have to use multiple cables nevertheless.

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