Spaniards have recycled in 2016 a total of 22,960 tons of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), which adds up to 3,743 tons more than the previous year, that is, a figure that represents 19.47 percent more through the integrated management system of the European Recycling Platform Spain (ERP Spain).
In addition, ERP points out that since it began its activity in 2005 in Spain it has already collected 232,500 tons of WEEE, a figure that “exceeds by almost 1,000 tons” the legal target assigned in 2016 through the distribution method defined in Royal Decree 110/2015.
In this way, ERP highlights its contribution to meeting its target at a level two percentage points above what corresponds to it by market share. The Royal Decree establishes that in 2016 45 percent by weight of the average of what was put on the market in 2013, 2014 and 2015 had to be collected and distributes that amount by market share among producers.
ERP’s general manager, Matias Rodrigues, has shown ERP’s satisfaction for having reached the WEEE recycling figure and added that the data encourage the entity to continue improving and advancing, especially after a “complex” last year because the new collection goals set by the Royal Decree started to become effective.
The entity also reports that “in a large majority” of autonomous communities ERP has achieved “very similar results” to the target that corresponds to their population.
“The Royal Decree establishes that the target must also be achieved in each autonomous community individually according to its population, as well as in each category of WEEE and in each use (domestic and professional), which is a very important challenge. In this sense, we have worked to achieve homogeneous collection results throughout the territory, i.e., consistent with the distribution of the population among the autonomous communities. The ultimate goal of this approach is to ensure that all citizens can correctly dispose of their WEEE wherever they are”, he stressed.
By fractions, 8,900 tons of large household appliances have been collected; then mixers, electric toys, consumer electronics, computer and telecommunications equipment, 6,632 tons; appliances with refrigerant gases, such as refrigerators and freezers, 4,877 tons; television and computer screens, 2,539 tons and, finally, 13 tons of lamps.
Rodríguez ha valorado que estos resultados muestran la “preocupación” de ERP por asegurar niveles de recogida proporcionales a su obligación en cada una de las categorías de RAEE.
Las empresas productoras adheridas a ERP pusieron el año pasado en el mercado 53.512 toneladas de aparatos eléctricos y electrónicos domésticos, que supone una cuota de mercado para este tipo de aparatos de cerca del 10 por ciento.
En cuanto al número de puntos de recogida RAEE, en 2016 se alcanzó una red de 1.873 puntos, que incluye puntos limpios municipales y tiendas de venta aparatos eléctricos y electrónicos. Entre las novedades del último año, ERP destaca el despliegue que está desarrollando de una nueva red de contenedores para pequeño aparato electrodoméstico para dar un servicio más cercano al ciudadano.
