Where will we dump five million TVs?

 

by SEAN POULTER Last updated at 09:30am on 3rd January 2007

Cold mountain: Discarded fridges in Manchester in 2004

 

 

 

Mountains of discarded TVs, toasters and other electrical items could pile up in unlicensed dumps as a result of new EU recycling rules, it's been claimed.

Under a Brussels directive, householders will be expected to send their old electrical items to council recycling centres.

 

The unwanted or broken televisions, toys, toasters and mobile phones will then be taken away and dismantled.

 

But councils say they do not have enough money to cope with the expected influx of 93million items a year.

 

Their umbrella group yesterday threatened to boycott the scheme, triggering fears that families may be reduced to dumping items wherever they can.

 

Four years ago an EU recycling directive on fridges led to the establishment of several unlicensed dumps, which soon became eyesores. At that time Britain did not have the facilities in place to safely dismantle the fridges.

 

The latest recycling measures, which come into force in the summer, involve the collection of much more waste - more than two million tonnes every year, including five million TV sets.

 

Under the rules, manufacturers such as Hoover-Candy, Bosch, Siemens and Electrolux will pay for the waste to be taken from council sites and recycled.

 

But the cost of taking the items from homes to the sites will be borne by retailers, chains such as the Currys group and Comet and department stores.

 

They are meeting their share with a one-off £10million contribution to a fund that will be distributed among local councils to expand and improve their facilities.

 

The Local Government Association says this will not cover an extra £9million a year in running costs. A spokesman said: "Unless business stumps up the money to cover councils' costs then it's possible many town halls simply won't be able to afford to get involved."

British Retail Consortium policy chief Nigel Smith denied retailers were short-changing councils, saying: "We are not asking them to do anything drastically new."

 

The LGA's claims were also rejected by the Department of Trade and Industry, which said local authorities will not need large sums to upgrade their facilities.

 

The recycling rules are part of the WEEE - Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment - directive.

I still remember one of my flatmates at university trying to defrost the ice from inside the freezer with a carving knife and puncturing the compartment releasing refrigerant liquid into the kitchen. Oh happy days :rolleyes:

I still remember one of my flatmates at university trying to defrost the ice from inside the freezer with a carving knife and puncturing the compartment releasing refrigerant liquid into the kitchen. Oh happy days :rolleyes:

 

He was The Fonz??:confused:

I still remember one of my flatmates at university trying to defrost the ice from inside the freezer with a carving knife and puncturing the compartment releasing refrigerant liquid into the kitchen. Oh happy days :rolleyes:

 

Your flatmate isn't the only one who has accidentally punctured the compartment.

 

*Rises arm*

 

These recycling stuff for electrical equipment have been known to come into effect last monday, back in 2004 I believe it was made offical, giving companies a good 24 months to get themselves sorted out, ready for the change. They are just lazy and cheap to buy the proper equipment.

Oh that is a weird sort of rule....