The technology world is a fast changing one and that inevitably means that we end up with equipment that is surplus to requirements after just a few years of use. Much of this ends up in landfill, but it shouldn’t.
which is why, since 2003, we have had Waste of Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) recycling schemes.
What are the Waste of Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations?
The WEEE regulations apply to both domestic and commercial products. Items which should be recycled via WEEE rather than just dumped in a bin or skip carry the crossed out wheelie bin symbol.
So what should you recycle under the WEEE provisions?
can recycle old smartphones, as well as peripherals like mice and keyboards and so on.
metals like silver, gold and copper that can be retrieved and reused. Other less valuable items like plastic parts and steel cases can also be recycled into new products.
Despite the new rules it’s reckoned that around 50 million tonnes of WEEE waste are generated worldwide each year. But a good deal of this is still not still not being disposed of properly with some nations recycling less than a quarter. This is not only wasteful, but it can also be very harmful to the environment.
How to Dispose off Old Kit?
refurbish them, allowing you to recoup some value.
perhaps you’re refitting an entire office – there are businesses that will collect equipment in bulk and safely dispose of it. For small amounts of WEEE waste, local councils usually have the facility to take items at their recycling centres and ensure they are properly disposed of.
It’s important to remember that when disposing of old computers and some related equipment they may contain sensitive data. You don’t want this to fall into the wrong hands so it’s vital that you undertake a clean up of the equipment before you dispose of it.
operating system and wipe the main hard drive.
and securely destroy them. Old external drives used for backups and so on should be disposed of in a similar way.
Remember that it’s not just computers that may contain data you don’t want to fall into the wrong hands. Routers and networking kit – as well as Internet of Things devices – will contain the login details for your networks, so it’s important that these too are wiped of information before disposal. Performing a factory reset of the device following the manufacturer’s’ instructions is usually all that is required to ensure no information can be recovered.