German WEEE model should be avoided in the UK

Recycling of waste electronic and electrical equipment, including laptops and mobile phones, needs to be given special attention in the UK, experts have warned, following poor examples set in Germany.

Surprisingly, for a country admired for its forwarding thinking initiatives in recycling over the years, Germany has been criticised for its failure to sufficiently track the extraction and disposing of CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) from old appliances in an environmentally friendly way.

Capital Magazine, a German publication, recently revealed that the country has an extraction rate of just 42 per cent, compared with 91 per cent in neighbouring Austria. According to the magazine, old appliances such as fridges and freezers are being exported to Africa where parts are re-used but the toxic waste not correctly disposed of.

“UK plc had better take its head out of the sand before the same happens here,” warned David Sutcliffe, a WEEE specialist.

“There are a number of people who are trying to comply with Best Available Treatment Recovery and Recycling Techniques (BATRRT) introduced by Defra but there are others who are using the legislation like “smoke and mirrors”, he added.

According to him, the legislation has simply led to covert activities, and the relevant agencies are unwilling to accept the problem exists, nor police them.

Dr Phillip Morton, CEO of producer compliance scheme, REPIC, commented recently; “The key to ensuring that WEEE is tracked, traced and treated appropriately lies in allowing access to WEEE for compliance schemes in proportion to their members’ needs. This is currently not the case in the UK.

“It is the responsibility of all producer compliance schemes (PCSs) to ensure that they police the way in which their WEEE is dealt with and provide a comprehensive paper trail to account for all of the treatment processes surrounding their WEEE.

“While this should be standard for all PCSs, there is concern because some schemes are collecting over and above their members needs and seeking to sell evidence.”

www.weee-recycle.com