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Colchester Borough Council is supporting Recycle Week and is encouraging residents to recycle their small electrical and electronic equipment (anything with a battery or plug) at local Recycling Centres for Household Waste.

What can be recycled?

Waste electrical and electronic equipment that can be recycled includes:

• kitchen appliances including kettles and toasters
• power tools
• tv’s
• music equipment
• electronic children’s toys
• battery powered clocks and watches
• fluorescent tubes and low energy light bulbs

Nearly 40% of UK residents say they are ‘electrical lovers’ with a quarter missing out on time with family and friends, and 33% losing sleep to spend time with gadgets such as laptops, mobile phones and iPods.  Each of us accumulates an average of three new electrical items a year, or 173 million nationally, but only 1 in 5 small electrical items gets recycled each year.  The valuable materials such as silver that these items contain can be used again which saves precious new resources from being used.  When recycled, just one toaster can provide enough steel to make 25 new cans.

Where can residents reuse or recycle electrical and electronic equipment?

Recycling Centres for Household Waste in the Colchester area are at Shrub End, West Mersea and Lawford.  Click here to find the nearest site and information on all items that are accepted there.

Alternatively unwanted working electrical and electronic equipment can find a new home by donating them to charities, including the British Heart Foundation, or on reuse websites.  Click here for charity and reuse website contacts.

De-clutter your e-clutter

Nearly 40% of UK residents have at least one electrical item from the last decade stored unused at home.  So whether clearing out cupboards, the attic or shed during Recycle Week or throughout the year residents can give all their old, broken or unwanted small electricals the chance to be useful again.  There’s no need to hang on to these items due to not being sure of what to do with them or hoping they will come in handy one day.

Residents can to pledge to recycle their waste electrical and electronic equipment, enter a prize draw and find more interesting facts and tips by visiting the Recycle Week website.