With 84 per cent of Irish households containing an average of 15 to 20 broken or unused electrical items in their home, there has never been a better time to declutter while positively impacting the environment.
To encourage people to recycle their electrical waste, a national campaign has been launched by Minister of State, Ossian Smyth. The "Recycle your Electrical Waste for Free!" awareness campaign will inform and educate people on what items can be recycled and advise them of the multiple civic amenity sites and participating retailers across Ireland.
Ossian Smyth, Minister of State with responsibility for Public Procurement, eGovernment and Circular Economy, said “I am delighted to launch this national awareness campaign today, to remind everyone that they can return their electrical waste for free recycling at hundreds of drop off points across the country.
“This campaign is a collaboration between the Government of Ireland, MyWaste.ie and the two national compliance schemes ERP Ireland and WEEE Ireland. It demonstrates our commitment to work together to raise public awareness of the importance of responsible recycling of electrical waste.”
He added “Electrical products contain valuable raw materials, and recycling these materials will help Ireland to transition to a circular economy, where waste is minimised”.
Typical hoarded electrical items include kettles, plugs and cables, mobile phones, TVs, microwaves, laptops, power tools, and vacuum cleaners.
Leo Donovan, CEO of WEEE Ireland, said "It is vital to remind everyone that old and broken electrical items with a plug, battery, or cable contain valuable components that can be given a second life through recycling. You can easily return these items for free recycling at your nearest civic amenity site or participating electrical retailer".
To learn more about electrical recycling and to locate your nearest free recycling drop-off points visit MyWaste.ie
