“Extended producer responsibility” laws and policies mandate that manufacturers selling electric and electronic goods into a country are responsible also to collect them back up as “e-waste” and recycle them. ASEKOL’s clients truly want that old hair dryer.
Photo credit: ASEKOL a.s.
The fire-engine red steel boxes started showing up around the Czech Republic in 2007. Then there were more and more. People started hearing and talking about how convenient they were. Today, steadily growing proportions of Czechs, Poles, and Slovaks recognize that these highly visible containers, strategically situated in public places and accessible 24/7, are where they can and should get rid of their worn out or outdated small electrical devices like laptops and mobile telephones, computer accessories, calculators, electric and electronic toys, hair dryers, shavers, power tools, toasters, and dead batteries. The boxes number nearly 4,000 in the Czech Republic alone.
These are the červené kontejnery (in Czech), czerwone kontenery (in Polish), and červeno-biele kontajnery (in Slovak). The Red Container is a concept worthy of imitation in other countries and languages, as well. The boxes’ convenience and visibility, in combination with public information efforts explaining their purpose and promoting their use, reduce the amount of consumer electronics wastefully ending up in landfills and incinerators. And that can mean, too, fewer of their components migrating into groundwater, soil, the atmosphere, our oceans, our food, and living organisms.
ASEKOL’s red containers make “turning old into new” (ze starého nové!) easy for the public. The poster on the side explains the “Crown per kilo” promotion whereby CZK 1 is donated to the Czech National Disability Council for every kilo of waste electrical goods deposited for recycling.
Photo credit: ASEKOL a.s.
ASEKOL (https://en.asekol.cz/red-containers/), a Czech Republic-based, nonprofit company representing manufactures and importers of electrical and electronic equipment and devices, has steadily grown its Red Containers program. Today, it is expanding along with ASEKOL’s business operations beyond the borders into neighboring countries.
Manufacturers and importers truly want to take back your e-waste!
ASEKOL and its clients, who include local firms as well as internationally recognized names like Sony, Dell, LG, and Canon, are eager to collect as much of this so-called “e-waste” or
“end-of-life” products as they possibly can. Their aim is to get these items repaired, reused, or – most commonly – recycled and the resulting materials directed back into Europe’s growing “circular economy.”
That is because in the Czech Republic and its European neighbors, electrical and electronic goods are subject to what is known as “extended producer responsibility.” That means, whoever sells these products into a country is financially responsible for collecting up at least 65% of that amount and certifying that it is being dealt with properly.
And that means e-waste is valuable in this part of the world. ASEKOL, through the so-called “compliance scheme for take-back of electrical and electronic equipment” that it operates on behalf of its clients, takes responsibility for this collection, sorting, and recycling, as well as the associated bookkeeping, financial management, and regulatory reporting
Headed back into the circular economy. End-of-life products today, new steel tomorrow.
Photo credit: Pixabay.
What’s more, the manufacturers and importers need not even collect up just their own
end-of-life electrical and electronic goods. They get just as much credit for gathering and recycling the products that their competitors had sold into the national market as they do for that which they themselves had originated. So, there is even competition to acquire the stuff.
This situation is of course very different from that in some other countries, where people mindlessly toss their old mobile phones out with the kitchen waste or fling their outdated televisions and computers into the dumpster behind the apartment building at night when they hope the neighbors aren’t watching.
Here’s how EPR and take-back work
In brief, the process is organized as follows: Every importer or manufacturer selling electric and electronic equipment (known also as “EEE”) within the Czech Republic must register with the Ministry of the Environment as an EEE producer. The firm must report the amount of EEE it places on the market and it must pay for that material’s ultimate recycling. Thereafter, the firm must prove that it has achieved certain quotas in collecting the EEE (which at the end of its life becomes known as waste EEE or “WEEE”) and paid for that recycling and/or recovery. Or, it can join a take-back scheme, such as that operated by ASEKOL, which takes care of it all.
Extended producer responsibility is key to making the circular economy function.
Photo credit: BlueGreen.
It is not just WEEE that is subject to EPR, by the way. In the Czech Republic, motor vehicles, motor oil, tires, and solar panels also are subject to mandatory take-back and recycling. Starting in 2025, EPR will apply as well to packaging materials made of plastic, metal, glass, paper and cardboard, as well as difficult to recycle composite packaging materials (such as used for aseptic beverage cartons). The proportions of these material that must be collected are set by law and known as quotas. The quotas can – and likely will – be gradually increased over time.
Red boxes and ASEKOL are making it easy
“ASEKOL’s red containers are uniquely designed for the collection of small electrical equipment and batteries, making it easier for people to sort household waste and minimize negative impact on the environment,” explains Daniel Šafář, Sales and Marketing Director at ASEKOL. “This system is unique in Europe in terms of its density and availability. The containers have undergone innovative developments since the project’s inception, particularly in the areas of security, preventing unauthorized entry, (remote sensing of) information on how full they are, and consequently optimization of the collection.”
ASEKOL collected and processed nearly 62,000 metric tons of e-waste in 2023 and nearly a half million tons since it started business in 2006. Those totals include more than just red container collection. The company also has larger containers and programs for taking back much bigger end-of-life devices, like televisions and desktop computers, even washing machines and refrigerators.
The company cooperates with cities and municipalities across the country and, since 2024, has even begun introducing home pickup of large end-of-life appliances and other WEEE. A unique project, Šafář relates, involves mobile collections directly from municipalities and households. “A resident can simply use a mobile app on his or her phone to order a collection from their home on collection days in their locality,” he notes.
Collections represent two-thirds of what is sold
Through all its collection activities, ASEKOL exceeded the 65% compliance collection quota for its clients in 2023. It also achieved 73% quota on televisions and computer monitors, 69% quota on large devices like electric ovens, copy machines and printers, electric ovens, mainframe computers, and large medical devices, as well as 68% quota on light bulbs and fluorescent tubes.
Once collected, the contents of a red container or other collection repository are now ASEKOL’s responsibility, acting on behalf of its clients. The e-waste is transported to a certified transshipment or processing plant, Šafář relates. There, the devices are sorted according to type and material. Individual components are dismantled and materials such as metals, plastics, and glass are recycled. Hazardous substances are removed in an environmentally safe manner and disposed of. The recovered raw materials are returned to the production process, thus reducing the need to extract raw materials and saving natural resources. This, Šafář emphasizes, is one of the basic principles of the circular economy.
Learn about the circular economy. This video lays it out in simple terms and images.
Video credit: Ellen MacArthur Foundation.
ASEKOL transfers the small electrical equipment from Red Containers to electrical waste processors who have necessary permits and capabilities. One qualification is WEEELABEX (“Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment Label of Excellence”) certification. This accreditation not only verifies that the processors recycle in an environmentally friendly manner, Šafář says, but also that they provide suitable working conditions, including to give proper attention to the health of their employees.
“At these plants, we can guarantee maximum material recovery that contributes to sustainability,” he reports. Another aspect of ASEKOL’s policy, Šafář adds, is to support what are termed sheltered workshops. These are facilities that employ people with disabilities who work in disassembly.
Proper recycling provides a host of advantages
Šafář explains that the benefits of properly recycling e-waste are significant and manifold. These include:
- Reduced extraction of new primary raw materials. E-waste contains valuable materials such as copper, aluminum, iron, precious metals, and plastics that can be recycled and reused.
- Smaller waste volume. Because recycling diminishes the amount of e-waste ending up in landfills, areas needed to create and operate landfills are smaller.
- Energy savings. Recycling materials is less energy intensive than are mining and producing new materials from primary sources.
- Less pollution. The fact is that e-waste contains hazardous substances such as mercury, lead, and cadmium. These can contaminate soil and water. Proper recycling prevents the release of these substances into the environment.
- Lower greenhouse gas emissions. Recycling end-of-life products reduces emissions that otherwise would be associated with the production of new materials and with waste disposal through incineration or landfill.
- Support to the circular economy. Reusing materials contributes to sustainability by manufacturing new goods out of the recycled arterials.
Reasons for caution
Even as recycling WEEE brings environmental benefits, some of the associated processes are in fact energy intensive “This may partially limit some of the environmental benefits of recycling,” ASEKOL acknowledges in its 2023 sustainability report. “Another challenge in our sector is the risk of the leakage of toxic substances such as heavy metals, flame retardants or ozone-depleting substances. For this reason, we only work with selected suppliers who process the waste we collect according to strict standards.”
Marketing and communication are key
Red Containers, EPR, and compliance schemes are no Fields of Dreams. E-waste does not end up in collection containers and recycling plants just because the containers exist. ASEKOL has spent years and plenty of money in building awareness and educating the public about the importance of recycling their devices and appliances in the post-consumer stage of their product lifecycles.
“Our marketing communication is primarily focused on educating the public in the areas of waste sorting, avoiding the creation of waste to begin with, reducing consumption and, of course, recycling and the circular economy,” Šafář explains. “The aim is to make every person aware that he or she, too, can contribute to sustainability through one’s own behavior and actions. We are trying to cover all communication channels for different age groups, and we prepare special projects for children.
“The public can see and hear our advertising spots on television and radio. We publish articles for the general public in print media, and we contribute to professional publications in the waste management industry. Of course, we also use popular online marketing, including on social networks. We support charity projects to complement our corporate social responsibility strategy.”
Some of ASEKOL’s special outreach and other activities in recent years have included
“e-waste collection” competitions wherein municipalities and regions vie to collect the most e-waste per capita and provide to the public the best collection facilities and infrastructure. The winning communities benefit from cash prizes to support community projects, and everybody stands to benefit from a better environment than might otherwise exist. Other activities associating WEEE collection with public support have involved the likes of schools and schoolchildren, volunteer fire departments, and sporting events.
ASEKOL has demonstrated through the years that high visibility, creativity, and public service contribute to running a successful take-back compliance scheme. Its Red Containers constitute just one very distinctive aspect of its work. In Europe and other parts of the world, it is likely that extended producer responsibility will only grow and so a sharing of good ideas that work will be invaluable.
There will be plentiful opportunity for clever and dedicated people to come up with creative ways to make it all function and work better. We at BlueGreen will be pleased to learn of great ideas and to share them with you as we find out about them.
Electric and electronic toys should be recycled, too.
Photo credit: ASEKOL a.s.