A recent report by the U.K.-based Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), finds that close to 25 percent of the electronic and electronic equipment disposed of each year could be reused, generating more than £220 million (US$343 million) in the process.
The study examined the potential reuse value for items disposed of by consumers. The report concludes that there is a potential to create high resale value from repair, refurbishment and open market resale.
Lucy Keal, WRAP project manager for products and materials, says, “We found that 23 percent of all the WEEE collected at recycling centers could have been either sold or resold after repair and refurbishment.”
“This in turn could generate gross revenues of more than £220 million a year - and even after taking account of the costs involved in acquiring the waste items and repairing or refurbishing them, this could still realize profits of more than £100 million.”
“As you’d expect, the resale values vary depending on the categories,” Keal adds. “Smaller items typically have lower reuse potential, but the proportion that is reusable has a higher value than other categories.
“Large domestic appliances such washing machines offer good potential value, from reuse, use of parts or from scrap, and make up 61 percent of the resale value from the bulky waste collections. Fridges and freezers offer particularly good reuse potential if they’re still working.”
More information is available at www.wrap.org.uk/downloads/WRAP_WEEE_HWRC_summary_report.2a9f20d1.11560.pdf