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Recycle your 'e-clutter'
WASTE experts at West Sussex County Council are spearheading a UK-wide drive to encourage people to recycle their 'e-clutter' – old electrical equipment – when spring cleaning this year.
The county council is helping pilot 'Don't Bin It – Bring It', a campaign to encourage people to take old WEEE goods (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) to their local Household Waste Recycling Site.
All of the county council's 11 Household Waste Recycling Sites, which are run by Viridor Waste Management, accept WEEE goods.
The campaign is being run by two nationwide organisations, WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme) and Recycle Now, which organises campaigns to encourage recycling.
Research shows on average we all have at least three unwanted electronic items cluttering up the home – and that's before digging around in the cupboards.
Last year, for example, 154 million small electrical products were bought in the UK, weighing a staggering 551,000 tonnes in total or 22kgs per household. But only around 10 per cent of this was recycled.
"In West Sussex families recycled 1769 tonnes of small electrical products between April and December of last year – that's the equivalent of four irons, 11 hairdryers or 49 electric toothbrushes per household," said Derek Whittington, County Council Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning.
"Many of us find it difficult to detach ourselves from old or unused items – often convincing ourselves that it's worth holding on to them 'just in case'. But more often than not, they end up forgotten in the backs of cupboards, in garage or lofts."
Recycle Now research shows three out of 10 of us have never recycled a small electrical item. The main reason is lack of knowledge – not knowing what can be recycled and not knowing where to take items.
Small electrical items we say we already recycle include:
Mobile phones (20%).
TVs (14%).
Computers (10%).
Toaster or Vacuum cleaner (9%)
However, other household items such as electric toothbrushes, battery-operated watches, electronic toys and hedge clippers were rarely recycled. Many items end up being thrown out with the household rubbish.
"Electrical items that use disposable batteries, have a mains cable or need recharging can all be recycled. The raw materials can then be put to new uses – for example, a typical iron contains enough steel to make 13 food cans," said Derek.
"So when you're spring cleaning this year, don't bin old electrical goods. Instead include them when you take all of your other spring cleaning clutter to your local Household Waste Recycling Site."
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Weather for Horsham
Thursday 09 February 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: -1 C to 3 C
Wind Speed: 6 mph
Wind direction: North east
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: -7 C to 2 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: East
