Many consumers might be concerned about the costs of recycling electronic waste following the implementation of the European Union’s WEEE (Waste, Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Directive this year. However, HP has conducted some research which shows that, not only are recycling costs lower than initially expected, but they are lower still in countries where recycling is a competitive industry.
According to a research review released by HP earlier this month, different levels of competition in recycling have led to a wide variation in actual recycling costs across Europe. Countries such as Austria, Germany and Spain, which have strong competition offering highly dynamic recycling systems, can charge just a few Euros cents for recycling a product. In Belgium, Switzerland and Ireland however, there is no competition for recycling and costs are higher.
Clear evidence
HP’s research provides for some clear but varied evidence. For example, recycling a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) will cost consumers less that 1 Euro cent in Spain and 2 Euros cents in Austria. However, in Belgium the same process will cost as much as 41 Euros cents and in Switzerland 1.33 Euros. To recycle a laptop in Germany costs just 7 Euro cents but in Belgium it will cost 1.53 Euros.
The review also revealed variations in the way producers (including HP) are asked to pay for recycling electronic equipment. In Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden, producers are charged the recycling costs of the actual product returned. In Austria and Spain, producers are charged for every kilo sold and in Belgium and Switzerland charges are based on units sold.
The evidence shows that there seems to be little or no consistency in the way recycling charges to producers are set across Europe. At HP, however, it has always been our goal to ensure that costs to consumers are minimised as much as possible and we view these different charging systems as a challenge to be overcome.
Encouraging competition
Throughout Europe it seems that consumers have shared the perception that the process of recycling electronic waste equates to high costs. Through our work with the European Recycling Platform (ERP), we are committed to encouraging a more competitive environment for technology recycling services. Our aim is always to ensure that standards are maintained whilst the lowest possible costs are passed on to consumers.
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