Oh yes WEEE can
Cherwell District Council is responding to suggestions from residents by introducing a new 'spring clean' extension to its successful recycling scheme.
The council is setting up a special collection service during March for small items of electrical equipment, like kettles, televisions, hairdryers, computers and irons. On the first three Saturdays in March, a small electrical items recycling collection van will stop off at different locations across the district.
Cherwell's Portfolio Holder for community, health and environment, Councillor George Reynolds, said: "Cherwell residents can take unwanted small electrical items to the Ardley and Alkerton waste and recycling centres to be recycled. But feedback from our roadshows tells us that some residents think it's not worth making the journey just to recycle an old kettle, for example."
"What's more, residents who can't drive can't get to the centres. They don't have the same opportunity to recycle small electrical items. They may throw them into the green bin. This new Cherwell recycling service will bridge the gap and avoid tonnes of material being dumped unnecessarily in landfill."
Research by the Recycle Now campaign has revealed that on average we have around three old, unwanted or broken small electrical goods (categorised as WEEE or Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) stored around our homes. We tend to recycle large items like washing machines, fridges and freezers when we buy replacements. But when it comes to smaller items a third of us simply throw them away. Nationally, 154 million small electrical products were bought in the UK in 2008 - that's about 551,000 tonnes, or 22kg per household. But in the same period only 56,000 tonnes of small electrical items were recycled - that’s about a tenth of the total bought.
Cherwell's small electricals collection van will be joined at each venue by a team from BCR Textiles as part of their 'cash for clothes' campaign. Residents can bring along unwanted clothes and shoes for recycling and will get 30p for each kilogram.
In the year to 31 March 2008, Cherwell achieved a recycling rate of 48% - up around 3% on the year before. Cherwell is the leading recycling council in the South East and one of the top 30 recycling councils in the country.
