Final 2024 WEEE collection targets confirmed
The Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has released the final household WEEE collection targets for the 2024 compliance year.
The total UK household collection target for 2024 is 482,335 tonnes, which is 2.03% higher than the WEEE collected in 2023.
The targets DEFRA set are drawn together by analysing past trends in collections and consider additional factors such as market trends. DEFRA has set ambitious targets for 2024 which are designed to promote greater efficiency in waste management and contribute towards a circular economy.
|
Category |
2023 Collection Level |
2024 Targets |
Increase from 2023 collection |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1 - Large Household Appliances |
159,191 |
159,273 |
0.05% |
|
2 - Small Household Appliances |
33,604 |
35,115 |
4.50% |
|
3 - IT and Telecoms Equipment |
39,650 |
41,415 |
4.45% |
|
4 - Consumer Equipment |
20,962 |
21,903 |
4.49% |
|
5 - Lighting Equipment |
5,539 |
5,787 |
4.78% |
|
6 - Electrical and Electronic Tools |
25,341 |
26,478 |
4.49% |
|
7 - Toys, Leisure, and Sports |
5,039 |
5,266 |
3.71% |
|
8 - Medical Devices |
27 |
28 |
3.70% |
|
9 - Monitoring and Control Instruments |
1,138 |
1,190 |
4.57% |
|
10 - Automatic Dispensers |
3 |
3 |
0.00% |
|
11 - Display Equipment |
42,761 |
46,239 |
8.13% |
|
12 - Cooling Appliances Containing Refrigerants |
134,979 |
135,075 |
0.07% |
|
13 - Gas Discharge Lamps |
4,041 |
4,059 |
0.45% |
|
14 - Photovoltaic Panels |
460 |
504 |
9.57% |
|
Small Mixed WEEE |
131,303 |
137,185 |
4.48% |
|
Total |
472,735 |
482,335 |
2.03% |
The WEEE category targets have seen an increase across all categories apart from Category 10 -Automatic Dispensers. Below are some reasonings behind the changes to the collection target.
Category 1 – Large Household Appliances: The average mid-point scrap price of light iron decreased by 1.7% in 2023 compared to 2022, but it is still far greater than it was before the pandemic. This is causing lower collections as units are diverted for scrap metal rather than WEEE recycling.
Categories 2-10 - Small Mixed WEEE: The trend over the past 3 years has shown a growth rate of 3.45% in the collection of small mixed WEEE. Using this figure in addition to the 2023 collection levels, the target for 2024 has been set at 137,185 tonnes.
Category 11 – Display Equipment: The baseline methodology was used and then 1,500 tonnes added to account for the substantial volumes of display equipment that are anticipated.
Category 12 – Cooling: 134,179 tonnes were gathered on average between 2016 and 2023. A small increase was therefore applied and the target set at 135,075 tonnes in 2024.
Category 13 - Lamps – Overtime lamp collections have decreased as homes have shifted to LED lights, which have much longer lifespans than fluorescent bulbs. Despite this decrease the target has still seen a small increase for 2024, with the aim of driving collections and discouraging lamps being thrown into residual waste.
Category 14 – Photovoltaic Panels: DEFRA are following the longer-term growth trend and applying a 9.5% uplift, which results in a 2024 target of 504 tonnes.
If you have any questions about these targets, please contact us on weee@beyond.ly and we will be happy to help.