The Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) has confirmed increased 2016 Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) collection targets following the release of new data for 2015.
WEEE collection targets are set by BIS each year as part of UK WEEE Regulations. These govern the percentage that should be financed by members of PCSs, which consist of manufacturers of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE). Targets are set for each of the 14 different categories of EEE.
The overall UK WEEE collection target is now 544,341 tonnes for 2016, which has increased from the original target of 528,687 and is nearly 37,000 tonnes higher than the target for 2015.
Total WEEE
PCS targets are calculated using the annual average growth observed over the previous five years resulting in targets that match the general trend. The original target for 2016 was set following the release of data from the WEEE settlement centre in February, which suggested approximately 512,000 tonnes of WEEE had been collected in 2015.
Data released by the Environment Agency in early March, however, revealed that actual household WEEE collection for 2015 was closer to 521,000 tonnes leading to the increased 2016 PCS target.
According to the EA, 1,427,210 tonnes of electrical and electronic equipment were placed on the market in 2015 and 35 per cent of this was collected, which is a drop of 0.5 percent on 2014. UK member states currently have a collection target of 730,450 tonnes for 2016 set out by the EU, which represents 45 per cent of EEE put on the market in the same year.
The increase in the target of WEEE collected by PCS will not be enough to meet the UK member state target, however the difference could be accounted for by collections outside the PCS system.
Individual categories
IT and Telecoms equipment has shown an average annual trend of nine per cent growth over recent years but in 2015 collection increased by 31 per cent. This is thought to be due to some PCSs allowing dual-use appliances, which can be used in households and businesses. The new target set for this category is 56,762 tonnes, which represents the mid point between trend growth and 2015 growth.
Inclusion of dual-use items has also had a significant impact on lamp WEEE collected. The vast majority of lamp products can be used in households and businesses. This has caused collection targets for this category to be calculated based on combined historical household and business WEEE data.
According to the EA, cooling appliances have the second highest collected tonnage (120,947 tonnes) for any category in 2015, however the 2016 target for this category is only three per cent higher than that of 2015.
This may be a reflection of research carried out in this sector which showed that approximately 90 per cent of EEE in this category is already collected.
Get our weekly digest
resource.co article ai
How will the government and DMOs address the challenges of including glass in DRS while ensuring a level playing field across the UK?
There's no easy solution to include glass in the DRS while maintaining a level playing field. Potential approaches include a phased introduction of glass, potentially with higher deposits to reflect its logistical challenges. The government and DMOs could incentivise innovation in glass packaging design and subsidise dedicated return points for glass-handling. Exemptions for smaller businesses unable to handle glass might also be necessary. Any successful solution will likely blend several approaches. It must address the differing priorities of devolved administrations, balance environmental benefits with logistical and cost implications, and be supported by robust consumer education campaigns emphasizing the importance of glass recycling.