Rethinking WEEE – Engaging undergraduate students to develop reuse, repair and recycle initiatives

Disposal of unwanted, obsolete, damaged, broken or indeed perfectly working electrical items (termed e-waste) is the fastest growing waste stream in the world. UK households dispose of 103,000 tonnes of waste electrical and electronics (WEEE) annually, and conversely retain an estimated 880 million unused electrical items which could be more sustainably managed (Materials Focus, 2024). To gain knowledge of public understanding relating to the drive towards a circular economy for WEEE within Belfast, we engaged undergraduate engineering students to explore public perception of repair, reuse and lastly, recycling of white goods and e-cigarettes (vapes) with a view to moving upwards in the recycling hierarchy. This presentation will summarise findings to date where data confirmed a sound level of public awareness and willingness to repair/reuse high quality white goods, and identified barriers including skills, availability of parts/equipment and cost, as the primary reasons for purchase a new item resulting in recycling of the original item – where in many cases a simple repair could have addressed the route cause mechanical or electrical issue. In addition, a complex regulatory framework presents challenges to those wishing to utilise their right-to-repair and/or to an economy being developed around reuse of white goods WEEE.

Materials Focus, 2024 ‘Nearly £1 billion worth of precious materials could be saved if all our electricals were recycled’, available online: https://www.materialfocus.org.uk/press-releases/nearly-1-billion-worth-of-precious-materials-could-be-saved-if-all-our-electricals-were-recycled/ [accessed 19th April 2024].