The Environment Agency has released the 2019 Q3 WEEE collected data
Latest WEEE collected data released by the Environment Agency (1 December 2019) further supports that the UK is unlikely to achieve set recycling targets for the third year in a row
Generally, the continuing trend following on from the Q2 data is that we are still behind target for the majority of WEEE categories; you can read our analysis of the Q2 WEEE collected data here.
Overall, at three quarters way through the year, the UK has collected 376,417 tonnes against a target of 550,577 tonnes, which is 68%. Category 12 (cooling appliances containing refrigerants) is the only one which overachieved its quarterly target, however, this is still only equivalent to 76% of its annual target and historically, figures drop considerably in Q4 for this category, so as per all other categories, it is likely that category 12 will also miss its overall target.
The graph below shows the percentage of WEEE collected per category in Q3 2019. The blue line indicates where the figures should be at this point in the year (three quarters through 2019) to be on track to meet the set targets for the year, highlighting we are behind target for most categories.
Despite being three-quarters of the way through the WEEE evidence year, Small Mixed WEEE (SMW) (categories 2 – 10), is only sitting at 62% and category 14 (PV/solar panels) is also in a poor position having only reached 37% of its target. Regardless, the UK has missed its targets overall every quarter this year; a collection rate of approximately 134,000 tonnes of material per quarter would have been required to be on track and each quarter to date has fallen short of this.
As mentioned in our previous analysis, WEEE collection targets have been missed for the past 2 years and it seems this will be the case for 2019 as well; some schemes will need to utilise the compliance fee in order to achieve compliance for their members. This could be a significant fee for 2019 and as in previous years, the cost would be passed on to producers.
If you have any queries with regards to this data or how WEEE producers may be affected, please don't hesitate to contact us on weee@complydirect.com or call 01756 794 951