Everybody's going Green

Over the last 10 years, the amount of WEEE in Europe has grown at a staggering pace with consumers using more and more electronics in their day-to-day lives.

When not disposed of properly, WEEE can be very harmful to human health. For example, TVs can contain lead which can be toxic to kidneys and nervous and reproductive systems, and could inhibit the mental development of young children and fetuses if people are exposed to them after they have been improperly disposed of at the end of their lives

Even items as small as batteries can be dangerous if not disposed of correctly. Some batteries contain potentially hazardous materials that, if not properly disposed of could seriously damage both the environment and human health through leakage.

Such electrical items as Fridges and Freezers contain many gases such as CFC, HCFC and HFC that can be extremely harmful to the planet. Recycling your old fridge, freezer etc is one way of contributing to the fight against climate change as it helps to stop the emission of these greenhouse gases that damage the O-Zone Layer and encourage global warming.

What's more, the amount of room left in landfills across Ireland is steadily decreasing. There simply isn't room for electrical items to be thrown into them anymore.

Recycling reduces our dependence on depleting natural resources as Electrical and Electronic Equipment and batteries contain metals, plastics and even glass that can be used again if recovered properly through recycling. Recycling is an important part of creating a sustainable world as it benefits society, the environment and makes economic sense by creating jobs. Before the WEEE Regulations 2005 much of the WEEE in Ireland ended up in landfills.

Then came along...

In 2007, our scheme collected over 9kg of household WEEE per person in Ireland. This is double the EU target and we are very proud of this as it places us near the top of the EU household electrical recycling 'league'. However, there is still a long way to go so don't stop recycling!