E-waste recycling in full swing; exceeded 2015 target, says report

SPOKANE (Scrap Monster): The efforts to recycle old electronics devices have gained significant momentum in Israel. The country has even surpassed the e-waste recycling target set for 2015.

The country’s Electronic Waste Law, which came into effect in March 2014, requires sellers of electronic devices and batteries to accept old devices from consumers who opt to switch to newer devices. Importers and manufacturers are also required to finance e-waste treating mechanisms.

In accordance with the Electronic Waste Law, authorized agencies are required to recycle at least 20% of the total weight of electronic equipment sold annually by manufacturers and importers in the country. The annual report published by ECommunity, that maintains recycling contract with several companies, indicates that the group recycled 24.3% of the weight of equipment produced by the contracted companies in 2015. This is well ahead of the goal of 20% set for the year.

The yearly report mentions that the group collected around 10,000 tons of used electronics for disposal, out of the 41,000 tons produced by the companies associated with the group. The company plans to recycle 25% of the 45,000 tons of devices expected to enter the market during 2016. However, the drop in prices paid to the e-waste treatment process is feared to impact recycling volumes during the year. Meantime, ECommunity added that they are confident in achieving the recycling goal of 35% in 2018 and 50% in 2021.

Meantime, the group managed to surpass the battery recycling target of 50 tons in 2015. The battery recycling totaled 52 tons, out of 400 tons of batteries that entered the market during the year.