Old appliances: German government wants to improve disposal of electronic waste

According to industry observers, over 300 million disused cell phones, tablets and laptops are lying unused in private households in Germany alone and are not disposed of. To recover this treasure trove of valuable raw materials and recycle this form of e-waste to a high standard, the German government wants to make it easier to return disused electrical appliances. To this end, the Federal Cabinet launched a draft amendment to the Electrical and Electronic Equipment Act (ElektroG) on Wednesday. It stipulates that collection points in registered stores must be uniformly labeled in the future.

This should make it easier for customers to "recognize the return options and use them in everyday life", according to the Federal Ministry for the Environment, which is responsible for the draft. In the future, a symbol with a crossed-out wheelie garbage can will also be placed directly on store shelves to indicate that electrical appliances must be disposed of separately after use. Improving information is key to ensuring that more disused appliances are recycled.

Test visits by Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH) to 21 supermarkets and drugstores have just revealed this: Almost half of these stores did not accept any e-waste. The organization therefore wants to take legal action against companies in the Edeka Group, Aldi-Nord, Netto Marken-Discount and Müller-Drogeriemarkt.

The Bundestag passed the latest relevant ElektroG reform in 2021. As a result, food retailers, supermarkets and discount stores with a sales area of at least 800 m² are obliged to take back electronic devices such as razors, cell phones or power banks when they are sold. DUH is calling for all supermarkets and drugstores, regardless of their size, to be obliged to take them back. If possible, professional collection containers should be placed near the checkout area. However, the government does not want to go that far with the planned regulations, which still have to pass the Bundesrat and Bundestag.

Reducing the fire risk of lithium batteries

Above all, the cabinet also intends to minimize the risk of fire caused by incorrectly disposed of or damaged lithium batteries from old electrical appliances. For the waste disposal industry, the improper collection of such increasingly permanently installed batteries poses "considerable potential dangers", it says. In the future, therefore, only trained personnel will be allowed to sort old electrical appliances when they are collected at recycling centers. This is to ensure that batteries – are removed and disposed of separately where possible –.

At the same time, the draft provides for an extended take-back obligation for disposable e-cigarettes. Kiosks, petrol stations and other sales outlets are to be obliged to take back used devices and provide explicit information about this. A new purchase would not be necessary. Customers can already return disposable vapes and other small electrical appliances free of charge to recycling centers, municipal collection points and – up to 25 cm in length –, including food retailers. Federal Environment Minister Carsten Schneider (SPD) spoke of a good lever for protecting the environment: "What can be recycled does not have to be dismantled in an environmentally harmful way."

(mma)