Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) accumulates over the years without all of it being properly recycled. Yet, it contains valuable materials that can be recycled.
WEEE, or Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment, refers to all electrical items that have reached the end of their life, become unusable, or become obsolete. This includes a wide variety of items: phones, computers, washing machines, televisions, toys, e-cigarettes, birthday cards that play music when opened, and more.
Across the world, we are using more and more electrical and electronic items; therefore, we are also generating more and more waste, but their end-of-life is not always well managed. Too often, these items end up forgotten at the bottom of a drawer, a closet, or even thrown away with household waste. 62 million tonnes of WEEE were generated worldwide in 2022.
E-waste growing faster than its recycling
Did you know? The USA holds the world record for e-waste production: each inhabitant throws away an average of 17.6 kg of electrical and electronic devices per year. In Louisiana, this figure even rises to 22 kg per person. By comparison, the average WEEE production is 6.4 kg per inhabitant in Asia, and only 2.57 kg in Africa.
Poorly Recycled Waste
WEEE is classified as hazardous waste by environmental regulations. Some items contain chemical substances that must not be released into the environment, such as mercury. They should therefore never be left in nature or on the ground in an open-air landfill. They must be collected by organized channels at the national level (legal channels), but this is not always the case. Some waste is not collected through legal channels, and its recycling can be poorly managed or even dangerous for those handling the WEEE. 22% of WEEE was collected and recycled (through legal channels) worldwide in 2022. Approximately 50% of WEEE was collected and recycled (through legal channels) in Louisiana in 2022.
Did you know? According to the WHO (World Health Organization), millions of children participate in the recycling of electronic waste worldwide. Tasked with dismantling miniature objects with their small hands, they handle toxic components without protection, putting their health at risk.
Waste rich in recyclable materials
Inside a phone, computer, or household appliance lie precious components such as gold, silver, copper, palladium, and other strategic metals. Rather than letting them sit in a drawer or throwing them away with the trash, reusing these devices gives them a second life. Recovering these materials both saves natural resources and limits the environmental and human damage associated with their extraction.
Is there risk of shortages of certain metals? AI offers many advantages, but its intensive use is leading to an explosion in data exchange, with an increasingly worrying environmental impact.
Solutions to reduce WEEE
Extending the lifespan of electrical and electronic devices, keeping your devices longer helps limit their environmental impact.
We can choose robust products when we buy them, but also repair our items in the event of a breakdown, rather than systematically replacing them. You can also benefit from a repair bonus if you have your items repaired by a certified professional, which lowers the bill!
Many workshops, repair shops, and local initiatives also offer a way to give your items a second life: an approach that’s economical, environmentally friendly, and full of common sense. If you don’t want to keep your device but it still works, you can donate it to a charity or drop it off at the recycling center, if there is one.
Recycling your electronic waste
When your device becomes truly unusable, it should definitely not be thrown away with household waste. It must be taken to a dedicated collection point. It will then be sent to a specialized treatment center. There, the equipment is sorted, decontaminated, and dismantled, and then the materials (metals, plastics, glass) are recycled to make new products.
In Louisiana, solutions exist for easily disposing of electronic waste at retailers, including dumpster rental services:
- 1 for 1 take-back: This rule applies to all electrical and electronic equipment. The store is required to take back your old equipment free of charge, even if the sale includes home delivery
- 1 for 0 take-back: Large stores that sell electrical and electronic items must accept old devices without you having to buy anything
Get involved with electronics recycling
The Week for Waste Reduction will highlight waste electrical and electronic equipment. This is an opportunity to take concrete action to reduce electronic waste: community collections, visits to sorting centers, repair workshops, fight littering, etc.
