WRAP begins move towards consultancy with new EU contract

Following the recent 40 per cent reduction in its budget as confirmed by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) has begun its transition towards consultancy work, with the announcement that it is to embark on a three year resource efficiency project funded by the European Union (EU). It is a development that will interest many of those recycling old computers and other materials with Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com).

The organisation’s chief executive added that there were several more funding opportunities “in the pipeline”, as it was announced that it had secured €3.1 million (£2.7 million) of funding in total, to oversee REBus (Resource Efficient Business Models), a project with financial backing from the EU LIFE+ fund which supports various environmental initiatives on the continent.

WRAP stated that it would focus on resource efficiency in four key markets as part of the project – namely electrical and electronic products, furniture, clothing and construction products. WRAP’s involvement in the project was announced just a fortnight after the organisation was informed of a reduction in its funding from the UK government of more than a third during the 2014/15 period, as part of the government’s Spending Review.

News of WRAP’s EU assignment also came at the same time as concerns were voiced at the Resource Association conference in London about an ongoing requirement to ensure quality in recycling – an area in which some observers in sectors like electrical waste recycling and copper recycling feel WRAP should be more deeply involved.

After the EU award was confirmed, WRAP chief executive Dr Liz Goodwin told letsrecycle.com of the organisation’s intention to boost the diversity of its income base, adding that in addition to its work for the UK governments, it intended to take on a greater consultancy role. She expressed confidence of the announcement being the “first of many” for the organisation in the months ahead.

She commented: “I was delighted to hear that WRAP had been successful in securing new EU funding for REBus (Resource Efficient Business Models).

“We have been saying for some time – most recently at the time of the recent Whitehall Spending Review – that WRAP is actively pursuing a new business model where we can draw on more diverse sources of funding, and this latest award is a perfect example of this in action.”

WRAP’s director of Closed Loop Economy, Marcus Gover, also welcomed the announcement, stating at the Resource Association conference that the funding award represented “very good news” at a time of budget cuts by government. WRAP currently receives funding from four government bodies, including the Welsh Government, Scottish Government and the Northern Ireland Assembly, as well as Defra.

The development shows how organisations of concern to those in such sectors as cardboard collection are showing adroitness in expanding their revenue streams at a time of reduced generosity from government – efforts in which we can only salute them here at Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com).

Editor’s Note: Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com) are represented by the search engine advertising and digital marketing specialists Jumping Spider Media. Email: info@jumpingspidermedia.co.uk or call: +44 (0)20 3070 1959 / +34 952 783 637.

Producers request that ‘flawed’ WEEE system is changed

With the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) having recently launched its consultation into the regulations around how electronic goods producers fund the recycling of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), several leading electronics producers have called for widespread changes to be made to the “excessively costly” system for WEEE recycling compliance, reports Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com).

It was concerns that the true cost of WEEE disposal was not reflected by the expense of complying with the present regulations that led to BIS launching its review. According to producers, the current producer responsibility system for WEEE is based on businesses finding it expensive to dispose of waste, and claim that since the regulations came into force, there has not been any change in the cost of compliance – despite an increase in commodity prices.

This has culminated in the release of a joint statement by Joint Trade Association (JTA) producer members, including Delonghi, Samsung, Candy, Toshiba, Hewlett Packard, Panasonic and Dell, expressing public support for proposed alterations to the system that are likely to make compliance less expensive. The JTA was established to lobby for changes to the present WEEE system.

Claiming that “there is no doubt that the UK system needs to change”, the producers added that the “need for change” was clearly set out by the government’s consultation and the linked impact assessment, which analyses the current system’s net costs and BIS’ proposed alternatives.

One of the most prominent critics of the current electrical waste recycling system is IT manufacturer Hewlett Packard, which published a report in January 2012 claiming that the existing regulations for compliance “exploited” producers. European waste policy advisor Mark Dempsey hailed the consultation as “a unique opportunity to deliver a UK WEEE system that works for everyone.” He added that the proposed changes would see the elimination of the trading of evidence between schemes, given the greater competition that it would produce.

Full support was also offered for changes to the present, “flawed” system by Toshiba, according to the firm’s environmental affairs manager Tom Nickson. He stated that “The government impact assessment shows that the current system inhibits competition and choice.”

Of four proposed options that BIS outlined for the future WEEE system in its consultation document, the JTA signified that it preferred the fourth one of matching collection sites to compliance schemes, given that it is already operating in various European countries. However, the JTA also said that it would support the third option – that of dispensing of the trading of WEEE evidence data between collection schemes in favour of setting compliance scheme targets, along with a ‘compliance fee’ in the event of these not being met.

Stakeholders have until June 21 to respond to the ongoing BIS consultation on the proposals. Meanwhile, those interested in recycling old computers and other electrical waste are welcome to do so cost-effectively, securely and entirely legally with Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com).

Editor’s Note: Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com) are represented by the search engine advertising and digital marketing specialists Jumping Spider Media. Email: info@jumpingspidermedia.co.uk or call: +44 (0)20 3070 1959 / +34 952 783 637.

UK recycling rate outgrows rest of Europe over past decade

The rate of recycling in the UK grew faster than that in any other European country in the period spanning 2001 to 2010, according to the latest findings of the European Environment Agency, in news that will interest many of those recycling old computers and other items with Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com).

The UK’s recycling rate was 39 per cent in 2010, compared to a mere 12 per cent nine years earlier. The country recording the next fastest growth in its recycling rate was Ireland, with its 11 per cent rate in 2001 comparing to a 36 per cent rate as the 2000s become the 2010s.

However, despite such strong growth in the likes of electrical waste recycling pushing the UK’s overall recycling rate ahead of the 35 per cent European average, the country remains some way adrift of the continent’s highest overall recycling rate of 63 per cent, which was recorded by Austria. Germany ranked close behind, with 62 per cent, followed by the Netherlands and Switzerland, which both managed 51 per cent.

Jacqueline McGlade, executive director at the European Environment Agency, commented: “In a relatively short time, some countries have successfully encouraged a culture of recycling, with infrastructure, incentives and public awareness campaigns. But others are still lagging behind, wasting huge volumes of resources. The current demand for some materials should alert countries to the clear economic opportunities in recycling.”

The news came as Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne used the recent Budget to announce a series of measures likely to be of interest to those involved in cardboard recycling, WEEE disposal and other aspects of the waste and recycling sector. As well as the announcement of a second phase of the Red Tape Challenge “to further improve the efficiency and effectiveness of regulation”, there was confirmation of an £8 per tonne rise in the standard rate of landfill tax from 2014.

That means that the standard rate of landfill tax will be £72 per tonne from 1 April this year, increasing to £80 per tonne a year later. There will remain a freeze in 2014-15 in the lower rate of landfill tax, at £2.50 per tonne. However, it was not indicated whether there would be any further rises in the tax from 1 April 2015, with some waste sector observers having recently suggested that the tax was already sufficiently high.

Similar sentiments were expressed by chair of the Environment and Housing Board of the Local Government Association, Councillor Mike Jones, who said that the good progress made by the UK to its recycling targets should make it unnecessary to heighten the landfill tax rate further. He called for councils, the waste sector and government to work together to help reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill.

WEEE recycling specialist Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com) continues to play a key role in helping UK organisations to dispose of all manner of materials in an environmentally friendly way, with services ranging from cardboard collection to hard drive disposal.

Editor’s Note: Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com) are represented by the search engine advertising and digital marketing specialists Jumping Spider Media. Email: info@jumpingspidermedia.co.uk or call: +44 (0)20 3070 1959 / +34 952 783 637.

Defra strikes back over Daily Mail ‘recycling con’ story

Those recycling old computers and other materials with Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com) may be interested to read of a publicity storm that has brewed over the supposed illegal export and sending to landfill of millions of tonnes of waste, as reported recently by the Daily Mail.

The claims have now been described as “myth” by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), in response to the newspaper’s front page headline on Saturday 6^th April, “Recycling: The Great Con Trick”. The ensuing article claimed that most of the recyclable waste being shipped to countries including India, China and Indonesia was disposed of in landfill after being rejected by reprocessors.

In news that may have alarmed many of those with an interest in services like computer, aluminium, cardboard or copper recycling, the newspaper added that it was ‘compulsory recycling schemes’ set up so that the Waste Framework Directive’s requirements could be met, rather than insufficient landfill space in the UK, that was to blame for the large amount that was disposed abroad.

However, Defra described the allegations as “untrue”, adding that “the vast majority of the millions of tonnes of waste that is legally exported for recycling is dealt with properly and recycled into other products.” In a statement on its website, it described the exporting of household waste from the UK for dumping as “absolutely illegal”, and said that the illegal export of improperly sorted materials was a prosecutable offence.

Defra added that the only materials that could be legally exported were “sorted materials such as metals, paper, card, glass or plastic that can be reused again”. It went on to state that it was presently working on updating the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations, which make clear the requirements for UK agencies’ enforcement of EU waste shipment regulations.

The statement continued:  “We are clamping down on people illegally exporting waste and giving enforcement agencies the necessary powers to combat illegal activity. Under international law, importing countries will also refuse entry to illegal shipments of waste.”

Adding that the materials recycling trade was a “global market”, the Department also indicated its wish for the growth of the UK’s recycling industry, which would present an “opportunity” to be grasped “with both hands” to the British economy’s benefit.

The Daily Mail’s allegations have also been refuted by those involved in services like aluminium recycling, who have stated that it would make little economic sense for a company to export waste abroad so that it could be buried in landfill.

With services ranging from WEEE disposal to cardboard recycling, here at Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com), we offer a comprehensive and efficient recycling service that is also fully compliant with the law at all times. We serve a wide range of businesses and organisations across the United Kingdom, and ensure that your waste items are safely, securely and lawfully disposed of and destroyed.

Editor’s Note: Collect and Recycle (http://www.collectandrecycle.com) are represented by the search engine advertising and digital marketing specialists Jumping Spider Media. Email: info@jumpingspidermedia.co.uk or call: +44 (0)20 3070 1959 / +34 952 783 637.