UK households and businesses produce 1.45 million tonnes of electrical waste each year, research shows. The e-waste research organisation Material Focus calculates that at least 500,000 tonnes of the waste were thrown away, stolen or hoarded. Its latest study suggests un-recycled household electricals cost the UK over £370m a year in lost materials like gold, copper, aluminium and steel. This is important because mining the metals leads to pollution. It also harms wildlife and fuels climate change.
The academic lead for the study was Alison Stowell at Lancaster University. She told BBC News: “These figures on electrical waste are quite enormous. “When we consume things, we don’t tend to think about how much material is in them or how valuable they could be if they are put back into the production and supply chain through recycling.” The report says 1.65 million tonnes of electricals were sold in the UK in 2017, with 155,000 tonnes dumped in domestic bins and subsequently incinerated or sent to landfill.
He also wants incentives offered such as cash-back or store vouchers for unwanted electrical goods – which could help encourage people back to the high-street. And he says it’s critical for ministers to oblige online platforms, like Amazon, to take far greater end-of-life responsibility for items their sellers put on the market, through perhaps secure deliveries.
Source: BBC
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