Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment(WEEE)

The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive, the 'WEEE Directive' was published on 27 January 2003.

The purpose of the Directive is ‘as a first priority the prevention of waste electrical and electronic equipment and in addition the reuse, recycling and other forms of recovery of such wastes so as to reduce the disposal of waste. It also seeks to improve the environmental performance of all operators involved in the life cycle of electrical and electronic equipment e.g. producers, distributors and consumers and in particular those operators directly involved in the treatment of waste electrical and electronic equipment’.

Aims of the WEEE Directive

1. Reduce waste from Electric and Electronic Equipment (EEE)
2. Increase recovery and recycling rates of WEEE
3. Encourage the separate collection of WEEE and minimise the disposal of WEEE as unsorted municipal waste
4. Improve the environmental performance of all operators involved throughout the lifecycle of EEE
5. Implement producer responsibility for WEEE.

Scope of the Directive

The WEEE Directive covers all electrical and electronic equipment used by consumers and electrical and electronic equipment intended for professional use. The Directive sorts EEE into 10 categories:

1. Large household appliances
2. Small household appliances
3. IT and telecommunications equipment
4. Consumer equipment
5. Lighting equipment
6. Electrical and electronic tools
7. Toys, leisure and sports equipment
8. Medical devices
9. Monitoring and control instruments
10. Automatic dispensers.

Annex 1B of the WEEE Directive provides a list of products which fall under each category. This list is not exhaustive but shows examples of the type of products included in the broader categories.

Who is affected by the Directive?

The WEEE Directive has implications for:

• producers
• distributors (wholesalers, retailers and distance sellers e.g. Internet sales)
• treatment facilities
• local authorities
• consumers.

What are the Directive targets for Collection and Recovery?

By 31 December 2006, the UK was to achieve a rate of separate WEEE collection of four kilograms per person per year from private households. The European Commission is currently consulting on a new WEEE collection target.

Where appropriate, priority should be given to the reuse of WEEE and its components, sub-assemblies and consumables. Where reuse is not possible, all WEEE separately collected should be sent for recovery. Producers must meet recovery and recycling targets set out in Article 7. Different targets are set for different categories of WEEE.