Electronic Waste in the European Union: A Systematic Review and a Pathway for Sustainable Management

Electronic waste (e-waste) remains among the fastest-growing and difficult waste streams to manage. It poses serious environmental and public-health risks when improperly handled. While the European Union (EU) has established a comprehensive regulatory framework—centred on the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) and Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directives—implementation outcomes continue to vary widely among member states. This review examines how e-waste governance operates across the EU through a systematic literature review (SLR) of 138 peer-reviewed publications published between 2002 and 2025 and indexed in Scopus and Web of Science. The findings show that EU e-waste governance is anchored in extended producer responsibility but remains concentrated on end-of-life management (e.g., reuse, repair, remanufacturing, recycling, and safe disposal) while upstream actions such as eco-design and sustainable production are underdeveloped. The barriers often identified are regulatory, operational, and behavioural, including uneven enforcement, informal waste flows, high collection costs, weak incentives for repair and reuse, and limited public participation. The study provides a novel and practical pathway comprising four interconnected pillars—governance, economic, social, and technological—that together strengthen the coherence and sustainability of e-waste management in the EU.