The Basel Convention is the world’s only international legally binding agreement about waste. It prevents industrialized countries from dumping hazardous and household waste on developing countries.
The Basel Convention adopted a decision to prohibit all such exports for any reason. It does not prevent non-hazardous scrap, or sorted household waste from being exported. But electronic wastes such as circuit boards, cathode ray tubes, fluorescent lamps, etc. are hazardous waste and must not be exported to developing countries according to law. Unfortunately, the United States is the only developed country that has failed to ratify this important Convention. The e-Stewards Standard, however, ensures that companies abide by it wherever they are located.