Responsible Electronic Recycling is Easy and Free of Charge
August 18, 2017
WEEE Ireland Urges a Responsible Approach to Waste Disposal amidst Reports of Widespread Organised Illegal Dumping
Interpol this week revealed that their ‘30 Days of Action’ campaign in June led to more than 1.5 million tonnes of illegal waste, much of which was electronic, being seized as part of a global clampdown on waste trafficking. This activity poses serious threats to our environment as well as to human health.
In light of increasing instances of illegal waste trafficking and dumping, WEEE Ireland is keen to remind people of the ease in which their electronic goods can be recycled for free. Household appliances and electronic waste can be recycled free at local authority recycling centres, through electrical retailers and through dedicated collection days within communities in association with Local Authorities.
WEEE Ireland operates under approval from The Minister for Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment. Waste collected via the authorised collection channels is fully traceable and is recycled to the highest EU standards. In 2016 alone WEEE Ireland collected 34,482 tonnes of electrical waste for recycling.
Commenting on the recent Interpol reports, Leo Donovan, CEO of WEEE Ireland said, “This Interpol report, although doesn’t specify that material came from Ireland, it does confirm what we suspected was happening to some electronic waste. We would encourage the public to only use authorised collection points to recycle their electronic waste for free – these are local authority recycling centres, electronic retail stores or at WEEE Ireland/Local Authority collection events. Authorised sites are can be found on our map at weeeireland.ie Our priority is to build on the Irish successes in e-waste recycling over the last years, and to achieve the 65% take back target of electronic products for recycling by the end of 2018.”
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For further information and media enquiries, contact:
Sarah McDonagh / Deirdre Smith / James Ringland
Ph: +353 (0)1 662 4712
About WEEE Ireland
WEEE Ireland (Waste, Electrical and Electronic Equipment) is a not for profit organisation, founded by Producers of electrical and electronic appliances to help them comply with the legal obligations imposed by the EU Battery Directive 2006/66/EC and WEEE Directive 2012/19/EU. WEEE Ireland manages the collection of household WEEE, lighting equipment and batteries from authorised collection points for recycling, on behalf of its Producer members. Our objective is to provide cost effective compliance for Producers to meet the requirements of the Regulations whilst minimising the cost to the consumer.
- Ireland was recognised as a best practice recycling leader by peers in Europe at the WEEE Forum conference in Malta, 2017.
- Irish consumers recycled 34,482 tonnes of waste electrical equipment in 2016 with WEEE Ireland – the equivalent of approximately 15 million household appliances or almost 10kg per person.
- Waste electrical and electronic goods takeback in Ireland is on the rise, with WEEE Ireland’s 2016 take back volume increasing 12% from 2015.
- WEEE Ireland coordinates collections of electronic waste through authorised collection points: retailers, civic amenity sites and collection events.