Residents in a block of flats in Wells can now easily recycle their electricals with the launch of a pilot project.
Thanks to funding from Material Focus, the not-for-profit leading the UK-wide ‘Recycle your Electricals’ campaign, the two month trial will allow the residents of St Athelm Lodge to easily and responsibly dispose of small electrical items in the conveniently located pink wheelie bin, with fortnightly collections planned by Somerset Council’s waste collections contractor, SUEZ.
Electrical items that can be recycled include anything with a plug, battery or cable that can fit into the wheelie bin. Items such as hairdryers, toasters, headphones and DVD players can all be recycled.
The pilot, which was unveiled last week at an event held for St Athelm Lodge, was supported by the Fixy project, an initiative developed by Somerset Council and Resource Futures. The Fixy project helps residents to reuse and recycle electricals and smart tech.
During the launch event Fixy took donations of smart tech for reuse, including smart phones, tablets and laptops. Its ‘Tech Amnesty’ collected items during the launch event from the residents. The tech will now be passed on to DonateIT CIC, for data-wiping, refurbishing, and then given to people in digital need.
According to Material Focus research, the UK discards 103,000 tonnes of electricals every year, instead of reusing or recycling them.
All electricals, even small inexpensive items such as cables, contain precious materials, like copper, lithium and gold and if we bin them they are lost forever.
Cllr Dixie Darch, Lead Member for Environment and Climate Change said:
“We’re pleased to support this project, it makes it easy for residents to recycle and helps them to do the right thing.
“Most people can recycle small electricals at the kerbside, and projects like this help to highlight the importance of recycling electricals.”
Linda Hull, Fixy Coordinator added:
“With over 11,000 households living in flats across Somerset, this pilot is an important first step in understanding how best to help such residents recycle their small electricals, keeping all the precious metals inside of them out of the waste stream.”
Scott Butler, Executive Director of Material Focus said:
“We are pleased to support the Fixy Project that addresses the pressing issue of e-waste.
“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.”
St. Athelm Lodge manager, David Goodall said:
“Our elderly residents often don’t know how to dispose of electrical items safely and securely, Fixy fixes this problem while also helping the environment.”
Mathew Canning, Contract Director, SUEZ recycling and recovery UK said:
“We are thrilled to be working on this pilot project. By offering these collections, we are helping make it easier for residents to recycle items that would previously have to be taken to a recycling site.
“Enhancing recycling services is at the heart of what we do, aligning perfectly with our vision to live in a world where there is no more waste!”
Most households in Somerset can recycle small electricals via their weekly kerbside recycling collection, however this option is not available to residents that have communal collections (for example people who live in flats).
Electrical items that are too large to fit in a carrier bag should be taken to one of Somerset’s recycling sites. Alternatively, use the recycling locator function online via the Recycle your Electricals website.
