Environment: UK at last brings in WEEE

Household goods are made of recyclable materials - plastics, metals, etc. - but traditionally they are dumped in landfills.

There is a recycling industry: it collects waste computers and sends them for re-use or to e.g. China where the gold is salvaged from e.g. computer boards.

Less well known is that the cases of computer monitors - the plastics, that is - have for some years been recycled and converted into fleeces used for blankets and warm jackets. And this weekend, Marks and Spencer announced that it is having fabric made from the same plastics and made into trousers.

And for several years, cars have had to have a significant proportion of recyclable materials.

But these approaches are just a drop in the ocean of thrown away equipment ranging from televisions to cookers and the WEEE directive covers a wide range of products:

The BBC says that the following groups are covered:

• Large household appliances: fridges, freezers, microwave ovens, washing machines
• Small household appliances: vacuum cleaners, toasters, coffee machines, electric toothbrushes
• IT and telecommunications equipment: PCs, laptops, monitors, keyboards, printers, cordless phones
• Consumer equipment: radios, TVs, DVD players, video recorders etc
• Lighting equipment: low-energy Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLs) are classified as WEEE
• Electric tools: all tools such as drills, saws, sewing machines. Only large, stationary industrial tools are exempt
• Toys, sport and leisure equipment: electric trains, game consoles, cycle computers etc
• Medical devices: implanted or infected products are exempt
• Monitoring and control devices: smoke alarms, thermostats etc
• Automated devices: this classification covers all appliances that automatically deliver products, e.g. drinks, food, money etc.

However, the burden does not fall directly on consumers: it falls on the manufacturing / distribution trades and on governments. For example, if a customer purchases a new refrigerator, the shop must provide a service to take the old one away. There are more than three dozen "producer compliance schemes" which manufacturers and importers into the UK must join. The schemes are funded by the manufacturers and importers and they arrange collection, delivery and disposal of affected waste without further charge to the customer. The average cost of each device subject to the regime is estimated to be less than GBP1 per item sold.