Residents are being reminded that recycling their electrical and electronic items is easy via their local libraries.
There are four options open to residents when small electrical items known as small WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) such as a radios, toasters or hairdryers are no longer needed.
Repair, sell or donate
Use the WEEE recycling bins located in Essex County Council’s libraries
Take the item to the nearest Essex County Council’s Recycling Centre for Household Waste
Small electrical items are accepted items as part of Braintree District Council’s paid for Bulky Waste Collection service at no additional cost.
The WEEE items collected at the libraries will be sorted to see what can be cleaned and repaired. Any items that are too damaged or do not pass the General Product Safety Regulations, will be recycled in the proper manner.
Every year an estimated 2 million tonnes of electrical items are thrown away in the UK. These are products that either have a plug or need batteries to work.
Councillor Richard van Dulken, Cabinet Member for Operations and Commercialisation, Braintree District Council said: “Every family is buying more and more electrical items and when they break it is tempting to just replace the item with a new one. We would always encourage residents to have them repaired in the first instance but where that isn’t possible thankfully there are several options to recycle the items so they don’t end up in landfill.”
During the pandemic when local libraries temporarily withdrew their WEEE recycling bins, Braintree District Council introduced a small WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) recycling service at drop off locations across the district on a four-weekly cycle. With the pandemic restrictions lifted, the options available to residents have been re-instated and the council’s drop off service is no longer required. The last collection day for this service will be Wednesday 10 August.
For a full list of Essex County Council’s libraries participating in the small WEEE Recycling drop off bins visit: www.loveessex.org/electricals
