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The regulations identify 10 broad categories of WEEE, including:
The regulations identify 10 broad categories of WEEE, including:
*Large household appliances e.g. fridges, cookers, microwaves, washing machines and dishwashers
#Large household appliances e.g. fridges, cookers, microwaves, washing machines and dishwashers
*Small household appliances e.g. vacuum cleaners, irons, toasters and clocks
#Small household appliances e.g. vacuum cleaners, irons, toasters and clocks
*IT and telecommunications equipment – e.g. personal computers, copying equipment, telephones and pocket calculators
#IT and telecommunications equipment – e.g. personal computers, copying equipment, telephones and pocket calculators
*Consumer equipment e.g. radios, televisions, hi-fi equipment, camcorders ad musical instruments
#Consumer equipment e.g. radios, televisions, hi-fi equipment, camcorders ad musical instruments
*Lighting equipment e.g. straight and compact fluorescent tubes and high intensity discharge lamps
#Lighting equipment e.g. straight and compact fluorescent tubes and high intensity discharge lamps
*Electrical and electronic tools – e.g. drills, saws and sewing machines, electric lawnmowers
#Electrical and electronic tools – e.g. drills, saws and sewing machines, electric lawnmowers
*Toys, leisure and sports equipment e.g. electric trains, games consoles and running machines
#Toys, leisure and sports equipment e.g. electric trains, games consoles and running machines
*Medical devices e.g. (non infected) dialysis machines, analysers, medical freezers and cardiology equipment
#Medical devices e.g. (non infected) dialysis machines, analysers, medical freezers and cardiology equipment
*Monitoring and control equipment e .g. smoke detectors, thermostats and heating regulators
#Monitoring and control equipment e .g. smoke detectors, thermostats and heating regulators
*Automatic dispensers e.g. hot drinks dispensers and money dispensers<ref name="foo">Health and Safety Executive, 2013. [http://www.hse.gov.uk/waste/waste-electrical.htm Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment recycling (WEEE). Hse.gov.uk.] [online] [Accessed 5 Dec. 2019].</ref>.
#Automatic dispensers e.g. hot drinks dispensers and money dispensers<ref name="foo">Health and Safety Executive, 2013. [http://www.hse.gov.uk/waste/waste-electrical.htm Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment recycling (WEEE). Hse.gov.uk.] [online] [Accessed 5 Dec. 2019].</ref>.


[[Recycling]] of WEEE is a specialist part of the waste and recycling industry; it is a rapidly growing sub-sector due largely to the implementation of the original WEEE Directive<ref name="foo" />.
[[Recycling]] of WEEE is a specialist part of the waste and recycling industry; it is a rapidly growing sub-sector due largely to the implementation of the original WEEE Directive<ref name="foo" />.

Revision as of 11:09, 10 March 2021

Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE), also known as E-waste, is end of life Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE), i.e. items that require electric currents or electromagnetic fields in order to operate. The EA reported[1] that 1.7 million tonnes of EEE was placed on the market in the UK in 2019, with 505,445 tonnes of WEEE collected.

WEEE - Picture from BioEnergy Consult, All Rights Reserved
WEEE - Picture from BioEnergy Consult, All Rights Reserved


Overview

WEEE was first introduced by the WEEE Directive in 2002 to address the environmental impacts of unwanted electrical and electronic equipment at end-of-life and disposal. WEEE is classed as either household or non-household WEEE. The objective of the Directive and its transposed legislation, the Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2007, as amended is to promote recycling and minimise waste by putting the emphasis for end-of-life treatment and recovery on the original producers or distributors of the items. In the 2019-21 House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee Report[2] it identifies the UK as the second highest generator of E-waste per person in the world, after Norway, at 23.9kg per person.

The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2013 (as amended) is the current underpinning UK legislation [3].

The regulations identify 10 broad categories of WEEE, including:

  1. Large household appliances e.g. fridges, cookers, microwaves, washing machines and dishwashers
  2. Small household appliances e.g. vacuum cleaners, irons, toasters and clocks
  3. IT and telecommunications equipment – e.g. personal computers, copying equipment, telephones and pocket calculators
  4. Consumer equipment e.g. radios, televisions, hi-fi equipment, camcorders ad musical instruments
  5. Lighting equipment e.g. straight and compact fluorescent tubes and high intensity discharge lamps
  6. Electrical and electronic tools – e.g. drills, saws and sewing machines, electric lawnmowers
  7. Toys, leisure and sports equipment e.g. electric trains, games consoles and running machines
  8. Medical devices e.g. (non infected) dialysis machines, analysers, medical freezers and cardiology equipment
  9. Monitoring and control equipment e .g. smoke detectors, thermostats and heating regulators
  10. Automatic dispensers e.g. hot drinks dispensers and money dispensers[4].

Recycling of WEEE is a specialist part of the waste and recycling industry; it is a rapidly growing sub-sector due largely to the implementation of the original WEEE Directive[4]. ‌ WEEE generally contains a mixed variety of materials, potentially including hazardous ones (e.g. cadmium, arsenic or lead), making it problematic to manage and meaning the treatment methods for WEEE vary massively depending on the technology used and the relevant category[4].

Macro Tonnage

The most recent information published by DEFRA [5] is summarized in the pie chart below, with 592,905 tonnes of collected discarded equipment waste identified in the UK in 2016 (WEEE being part of this category and the broader tonnage summarized in UK Waste Tonnage), the most recent data from the EACite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad nameindicated that 1.4 million tonnes of Household Electronic and Electrical Equipment and 0.3 million tonnes of Non-Household Electronic and Electrical Equipment were placed on the market in 2019, of which 505,455 tonnes was collected against a target of 550,579 tonnes:

Discarded Equipment
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Data Table
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (AFF) 165
Mining and Quarrying (MQ) 502
Industrial (Ind) 29,774
Construction (Con) 3,937
Commercial (Com) 201,877
Household (HH) 356,650

The macro numbers above do not breakdown the component elements of WEEE, but the EA data for January to December 2019 provides a more detailed breakdown for Household and Non-household WEEECite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad name.

Category Name Household WEEE collected from a DCF[6](tonnes) Household WEEE returned under regulation 43[7] (tonnes) Household WEEE returned under regulation 50 [8](tonnes) Total separately collected household WEEE[9](tonnes) Total Non-household WEEE (tonnes) Total WEEE (tonnes)
1 Large Household Appliances 74,809 85,332 14,661 175,236 248 175,484
2 Small Household Appliances 31,526 759 3,228 35,542 37 35,579
3 IT and Telcomms Equipment 31,546 764 12,386 44,798 1,906 46,704
4 Consumer Equipment 30,293 322 5,405 36,034 21 36,055
5 Lighting Equipment 10 73 499 582 2,697 3,279
6 Electrical and Electronic Tools 16,622 245 952 17,838 176 18,014
7 Toys Leisure and Sports 2,001 25 256 2,283 2 2,285
8 Medical Devices 0 0 2 3 281 283
9 Monitoring and Control Instruments 30 21 102 156 92 247
10 Automatic Dispensers 0 0 0 0 123 124
11 Display Equipment 37,919 1,395 5,300 44,615 20 44,634
12 Cooling Appliances Containing Refrigerants 83,648 40,948 9,609 134,811 3,327 138,138
13 Gas Discharge Lamps and LED Light Sources 945 250 3,358 4,553 2 4,555
14 Photovoltaic Panels 11 13 41 65 0 65
Total 309,360 130,148 55,799 496,514 8,931 505,445


The following WEEE headers in the page are a selection of the above list as captured by local authorities handling WEEE and as reported through WasteDataFlow.

Fluorescent tubes and other light bulbs

Below is a list of local authorities that sends more than 2000 tonnes of this material to a single waste operator.


Authority Stream Facility Operator Address Material Tonnes
East Sussex County Council Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) M D J Light Bros ( Scrap Processors ) Ltd Greystone Quarry, Southerham, Lewes, East Sussex WEEE - Flourescent tubes and other light bulbs 6,150.33 {{{date}}}
Norfolk County Council Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) Wiser Recycling Ltd St lves Resource Recovery Facility, Caxton Road, St lves, Cornwall WEEE - Flourescent tubes and other light bulbs 4,205.06 {{{date}}}
Greater Manchester WDA (MBC) Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) Recycling Lives Ltd D1/ D2 Longridge Road, Red Scar Bus Park, Preston, Lancashire WEEE - Flourescent tubes and other light bulbs 3,953.13 {{{date}}}

Fridges & Freezers

Below is a list of local authorities that sends more than 5000 tonnes of this material to a single waste operator.


Authority Stream Facility Operator Address Material Tonnes
Stockport MBC Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) SUEZ Recycling and Recovery UK Ltd Longley Lane, Sharston, Manchester WEEE - Fridges & Freezers 12,058.54 {{{date}}}
West Sussex County Council Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) M D J Light Bros ( Scrap Processors ) Ltd Greystone Quarry, Southerham, Lewes, East Sussex WEEE - Fridges & Freezers 9,245.76 {{{date}}}
East Sussex County Council Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) M D J Light Bros ( Scrap Processors ) Ltd Greystone Quarry, Southerham, Lewes, East Sussex WEEE - Fridges & Freezers 6,150.33 {{{date}}}

Large Domestic App

Below is a list of local authorities that sends more than 10000 tonnes of this material to a single waste operator.


Authority Stream Facility Operator Address Material Tonnes
Merseyside WDA (MBC) Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) S Norton & Co Ltd Bankfield House, Bankfield Mill, Regent Road, Liverpool, Merseyside WEEE - Large Domestic App 17,486.76 {{{date}}}
Devon County Council Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) Sims Group Uk Ltd 7 Christow Road, Marsh Barton Ind Est, Exeter, Devon WEEE - Large Domestic App 10,490.73 {{{date}}}
Greater Manchester WDA (MBC) Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) Recycling Lives Ltd D1/ D2 Longridge Road, Red Scar Bus Park, Preston, Lancashire WEEE - Large Domestic App 10,159.73 {{{date}}}

Small Domestic App

Below is a list of local authorities that sends more than 10000 tonnes of this material to a single waste operator.


Authority Stream Facility Operator Address Material Tonnes
Merseyside WDA (MBC) Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) S Norton & Co Ltd Bankfield House, Bankfield Mill, Regent Road, Liverpool, Merseyside WEEE - Small Domestic App 17,486.76 {{{date}}}
Devon County Council Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) Sims Group Uk Ltd 7 Christow Road, Marsh Barton Ind Est, Exeter, Devon WEEE - Small Domestic App 10,490.73 {{{date}}}

TVs & Monitors

Below is a list of local authorities that sends more than 5000 tonnes of this material to a single waste operator.


Authority Stream Facility Operator Address Material Tonnes
Greater Manchester WDA (MBC) Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) Recycling Lives Ltd D1/ D2 Longridge Road, Red Scar Bus Park, Preston, Lancashire WEEE - TVs & Monitors 10,159.73 {{{date}}}
West Sussex County Council Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) M D J Light Bros ( Scrap Processors ) Ltd Greystone Quarry, Southerham, Lewes, East Sussex WEEE - TVs & Monitors 9,245.76 {{{date}}}
Lancashire County Council Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) Recycling Lives Ltd D1/ D2 Longridge Road, Red Scar Bus Park, Preston, Lancashire WEEE - TVs & Monitors 8,725.31 {{{date}}}
East Sussex County Council Source segregated recyclate Reprocessor - recycling (qu19) M D J Light Bros ( Scrap Processors ) Ltd Greystone Quarry, Southerham, Lewes, East Sussex WEEE - TVs & Monitors 6,150.33 {{{date}}}

References

  1. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/waste-electrical-and-electronic-equipment-weee-in-the-uk
  2. ↑ Electronic Waste and the Circular Economy
  3. ↑ Office for Product Safety and Standards, 2018. Regulations: waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). GOV.UK. [online] [Accessed 5 Dec. 2019]
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Health and Safety Executive, 2013. Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment recycling (WEEE). Hse.gov.uk. [online] [Accessed 5 Dec. 2019].
  5. ↑ UK Statistics on Waste 2020
  6. ↑ This figure includes household WEEE from Designated Collection Facilities (DCFs) that has been collected by Producer Compliance Schemes, and household WEEE that DCFs have cleared themselves
  7. ↑ This figure includes household WEEE returned by distributors to Producer Compliance Schemes
  8. ↑ This figure includes household WEEE collected through a collection system a Producer Compliance Scheme operates itself
  9. ↑ This figure is the amount of WEEE Producer Compliance Schemes have reported as being delivered to Approved Authorised Treatment Facilities and Approved Exporters on their behalf
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