Large companies such as Amazon and Apple should be held responsible for collecting, recycling and repairing their own products. As a result, electronic waste (e-waste) can be reduced by 155,000 tonnes in the UK alone. That writes The Guardian .
This is shown by research carried out by a British committee set up for this purpose. The UK is lagging behind other countries when it comes to creating a circular economy for electronic waste. The UK is responsible for a huge amount of e-waste and ranks second behind Norway worldwide. This is partly because the country does not handle electronic waste properly. A lot of waste ends up in landfill, is incinerated or dumped overseas. The legislation makes products and retailers responsible for this, but they do not fulfill their responsibility.
Amazon and Apple must do more against electronic waste
It is estimated that about 40 percent of this waste disappears abroad, and in some cases it is done illegally . And that is a shame, because many of those devices still contain parts and materials that we can easily reuse, so that natural resources can be left alone more often. This is an important means for a sustainable future. Online retailers like Amazon and eBay are thriving in the UK because they are not seen as retailers or products. As a result, they cannot be legally obliged to collect and recycle e-waste.
Since online sales have only increased in recent years, notwithstanding the ongoing pandemic, this is a major problem for one of the largest electronic waste products in the world. In addition, some manufacturers often include devices that only last a few years, forcing people to buy a new one. Companies like Apple aren’t helping either, because they use things like glue in their devices, which usually make repairs difficult. Making is often expensive, making it “economically better” to buy a new one.
The committee has a number of ideas for combating electronic waste:
- have the right to repair laid down in law
- discount on VAT that applies to repairs
- require producers to collect products and pay for recycling
- Present ambitious long-term plans in the context of recycling
Response from Apple
Apple has responded to what the committee said, saying that such practices are not being carried out. The company says it encourages consumers to return old phones so they can be sold refurbished or stripped for parts.
