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WEEE
In order to prevent the generation of hazardous waste, Directive 2002/95/EC requires the substitution of various heavy metals (lead, mercury, cadmium, and hexavalent chromium) and brominated flame retardants (polybrominated biphenyls (PBB) or polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE)) in new electrical and electronic equipment put on the market from 1 July 2006.
The falling cost of ICT equipment, and subsequent
growth in the number of units being replaced by newer equipment, has
seen an increase in the amount of WEEE being sent to landfill. This has
exacerbated waste disposal problems as a lot of WEEE contains toxic
material, such as heavy metals and organic pollutants. A lot of the
components of WEEE won’t biodegrade and take up a great deal landfill
space. Much of the WEEE in landfill today comprises discarded ‘white
goods’, such as fridges and washing machines, and unwanted ICT
equipment, such as PCs, CRT monitors, printers and photocopying
machines.
SustainIT and WEEE
SustainIT's project report "Aisings,
Collection and Handling of Waste Electrical
and Electronic Equipment in Peterborough".
In advance of implementation of the Waste Electrical & Electronic
Equipment
(WEEE) Directive in 2004, this project was designed to identify best
practice
options for collecting, processing and remanufacturing/recycling these
items in
Greater Peterborough and its rural hinterland. To achieve this aim the
project
set out to analyse data on WEEE arising in the Peterborough area and how the costs
of
processing and remanufacturing/recycling activities may be most
effectively
allocated between different elements in the supply chain. The project
also
aimed to assess the role of social enterprise in such markets.
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