Copper recycling in Europe: Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE)

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Copper recycling in Europe:
Waster from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE)

Copper is 100% recyclable and can be reused multiple times without losing its intrinsic physical and chemicals properties. Recycling depends on many factors, ranging from:

  • Consumers’ responsibility in returning discarded or obsolete products
  • Consistent reporting of waste streams
  • Products’ lifespan and their subsequent decommissioning
  • Overall efficiency of the waste management system

From all copper produced globally, nearly 70% is used for electrical/conductivity applications. In the EU, the equivalent figure is 65%.

WEEE makes up around 11% of the total EU End-of-Life copper in waste. Along with other metals in WEEE streams, copper recycling offers a great opportunity for value retention in the EU. WEEE recycling inefficiencies primarily occur at the collection and separation stages.

 

Learn more about Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE)

Symeon Christofyllidis

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