Waste electronics – costly, complex and far from comfortable
02Jan
Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) is the elephant in the room. A quick scan of recent news articles pulls up a plethora of missed targets, new legislation, illegal exportation and high technology. A heady mix of information, indeed, and truly a minefield. On top of this, DEFRA said in the recent UK Resources and Waste Strategy that it plans to review UK WEEE regulations again in early 2020.
Those involved in the industry need to be fully aware of the timescales for delivery, the scale of change and impacts of EU Exit discussions on parliamentary process and economic pressures on the economy as a whole. But ask any manufacturer of electronics in the UK today what they are looking for in terms of compliance with management of their WEEE, and they will probably simply say ‘a level playing field.’
There are those who are truly taking a stand – multinational consumer facing brands with a lot to lose in reputation terms – and those who are simply paying lip service to the WEEE Directive and environmental legislation. With more than 300 different types of plastic used in manufacturing, it’s complex, it’s costly and it’s a far from comfortable issue.
Speaking at the RINA Electrical and Electronic Equipment and the Environment conference in London in November, Dr Kevin Bradley, Secretary General of BSEF, The International Bromine Council, said what’s needed is pragmatic solutions and a better approach to sorting out the waste at source.
“No one is collecting enough,” he said, “and an awful lot of WEEE is still stuck in people’s drawers – they don’t know what to do with it. In terms of recyclers, there isn’t a single company that processes plastic waste – especially plastic containing brominated fire retardants (BFRs) – from start to finish. There are a lot of grey areas, and material is exported, with companies washing their hands of the responsibilities.”
Read the full article in the January 2020 of PBSI
