Small electricals have kerb appeal
DISTRICT COUNCIL JOINS UK RECYCLING PROJECT
HART District Council has begun to roll out a service for the kerbside collection of small electrical appliances in the hope that residents will get behind the drive to recycle.
The doorstep collections began on Monday to make it easier for people to recycle items that have a plug, battery or cable.
By offering this service, the district council said it can recycle thousands more small appliances, toys and other electricals each year.
This service will be available to all residents by the spring and once it launches in their area, people can recycle old small electricals by leaving them on top of their waste or recycling bins.
This is one of more than 40 UK projects funded by Material Focus, a not-for-profit group leading the
Recycle Your Electricals campaign, which has provided £22,000 to support the scheme. The district council is joining other projects around the country in making it easier for an estimated 10 million UK residents to recycle their electricals.
People will be made aware of how and where they can recycle through information on leaflets and eyecatching posters featuring HypnoCat, the Recycle Your Electricals’ mesmerising pink, fluffy mascot.
The aim of the nationwide Electricals Recycling Fund is to significantly reduce e-waste and its environmental impact by making it easier for consumers to recycle their electricals. Projects that have been funded by Material Focus include a variety of recycling methods, from kerbside collections to more dropoff points in schools, community centres and bring banks. Overall, there will be more than 400 new collection points, plus kerbside collections for 5.5 million UK residents.
Recycle Your Electricals’ research has shown that 80% of consumers believe recycling is a good thing, and many already recycle items like paper and plastic.
Research has also shown that most of us have unwanted electricals we want to get rid of, even if it is just a drawer of cables. And yet 39% of people bin electricals rather than recycle them, saying they think it is simply too hard to recycle. The aim of these projects is to overcome these issues by making it easier.
Hart’s Cllr Richard Quarterman, the portfolio holder for corporate services, said: “Our residents are keen to increase the amount of recycling they can do as part of their household collections, and we are pleased to now be able to offer this additional service, allowing broken electricals to become something new. As well as this service for broken or unusable products, we’d encourage everyone to look at options for those electricals still in good working order, such as donating them to allow them to continue to be used.”
“We are pleased to support this next phase in Hart District Council’s new kerbside collection, that addresses the pressing issue of e-waste,” said Scott Butler, executive director of Material Focus.
“By investing in improved collection and drop-off services, and exploring new recycling methods, we are taking a significant step towards creating a more sustainable future by making it easier for 10 million more people to recycle their electricals.”
To find your nearest recycling point, go to https://www.recycleyourelectricals.org.uk/