Although some countries met the August 13, 2005, deadline for implementation of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive, many countries – including the UK – have postponed implementation until a later date.
” By offering the new one-stop service for free, HP is making it easy for businesses to use.“
– Kirstie McIntyre, HP UK and Ireland
Nevertheless, HP has said its recycling service is now available. The company's business customers can now return their IT hardware to designated collection points to be recycled in accordance with WEEE Directive. They can access the company's recycling service via the HP website, which directs them to the nearest collection point.
Once the products are at the collection point they will be sent on for recycling, HP has said, adding that the goods will not be sent outside of the European Union.
One-stop
Kirstie McIntyre, WEEE programme manager for HP UK and Ireland, said: “Although HP has been recycling for many years, the new free recycling service will be available for the first time throughout the entire European Union. By offering the new one-stop service for free, HP is making it easy for businesses to use.
“Unlike the previous recycling programme, there are no calculations or negotiations regarding the volume and type of products being returned,” she added.
Under the European WEEE Directive producers of electronic equipment will be responsible for the recycling of all end of life electrical products. In the UK, the start date has been put back to June 2006 (see letsrecycle.com story).
Letsrecycle.com is holding a special conference on the way forward for waste electronics on October 12. For more details see the letsrecycle.com events page
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