Laurence Kieran Operations Manager

Sandra Hopkins Environmental Policy Executive

Suzanne Cunningham Operations Assistant

Highlights 2010

• WEEE Ireland achieved (and exceeded in many categories) the recycling rate targets set by the EU for each category of WEEE collected by the scheme.
• Through proper removal and treatment of CFC gases from Fridge/Freezers the scheme diverted an estimated 120 million kg of CO₂ equivalent emissions.
• All main contractors were visited in 2010 under the WEEE Ireland audit programme to help the scheme ensure the environmentally responsible management of WEEE and waste batteries.

The WEEE Ireland Operations Department is responsible for overseeing that WEEE and waste batteries, collected on behalf of the scheme, are managed in an environmentally responsible way. By ensuring that the treatment of this waste stream is conducted in accordance with the highest possible standards, this ensures maximum recovery of resources. WEEE Ireland is part of the working group within the WEEE forum developing the WEEELabex standards of excellence for collection and treatment of WEEE.

People can be a little sceptical about recycling and sometimes question whether the broken electrical products that have been dropped off at the local civic amenity site are not just doomed to disintegrate in an abandoned electronic graveyard. Thankfully this is not the case, and there’s a good reason why WEEE recycling is now commonly referred to as a resource recovery operation or “urban mining”.

Recycling waste electrical and electronic equipment has several benefits. Firstly, it keeps these items out of landfill. Secondly, it removes potential hazards from the environment as these are removed and appropriately disposed of during the recycling process. Thirdly, the component materials, when separated into pure fractions, can be reused in manufacturing and industry and therefore have their own potential value.

At the moment, the focus in Europe is on maximising the potentially valuable resources within electrical waste as part of sustainable development.

WEEE Families

Upon receipt of a collection request a logistics contractor arranges for the WEEE material to be collected from the authorised collection point. A variety of collection vehicles and appropriate receptacles are used to carry out the collection. Material is picked up from each individual collection point in different WEEE groupings or “families” to allow for specific recycling and treatment processes namely;

• Fridge/Freezers (FF),
• Large Household Appliances (LHA),
• Mixed WEEE,
• TVs and Computer Monitors (CRT) and
• Fluorescent Tubes (Lamps).

WEEE is transported either directly to a treatment plant in Ireland or to a bulking up facility where material is assembled prior to shipping elsewhere in Europe for recycling. The material is weighed in and prepared for treatment or onward movement. The Operations Department coordinates monthly sampling of WEEE material at contractor facilities to separate the families into categories for cost allocation to the different Producer sectors.

Recycling Processes

WEEE recycling is a multi staged process focussing on the removal of hazardous materials and contaminants through depollution while maximising the recovery of the maximum amount of material in fractional form for use again in manufacturing and other processes.

Stage 1 processes: Removal of contaminants – depollution of hazards – pre treatment
Stage 2 processes: Breaking or shredding of material – removal of large fractions – rudimentary separation
Stage 3 processes: Finer granulation – intense dedicated separation – recovery of pure final fractions