Turkish electronics recycler describes state of the industry

According to one electronics recycler that has operated in Turkey for the last 12 years, the country may have untapped opportunity when it comes to electronics recycling.

Murat Ilgar, general manager of Exitcom Recycling, based in Turkey’s Kocaeli province, told the state-run Anadolu Press Agency that the country produces 500,000 tons of electronic waste each year; however, only 25 percent of these devices can be collected for recycling. The information was published on Turkey’s Daily Sabah website.

Ilgar says that Exitcom recycles 4,000 metric tons of obsolete electronics per year. The materials are collected from Turkey, Germany, Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan.

Commonly discarded electronics, Ilgar says, include cell phones that do not support 4.5G technology. However, most of Turkey’s electronic waste comprises old televisions, the recycler says.