DISPOSING OF APPLIANCES AND DEVICES - EASY AND ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND

NEWS

Successful record for collection volumes despite challenging environment

In 2023, around 142,500 tonnes of used household electrical appliances (WEEE) and just more than 3,000 tonnes of portable batteries were collected in Austria. Compared to 2022, this corresponds to an increase of 5.5 percent for WEEE and 5.3 percent for portable batteries.

Success of “Her mit Leer” information campaign continues

The nationwide information campaign “Her mit Leer” has contributed to the positive development in the collection of batteries and continues to be very effective. The campaign aims to change the behaviour of consumers through educational work: https://hermitleer.at/. At 11 percent, the volume of batteries collected from retail boxes once again increased at an above-average rate in 2023. The prescribed EU collection rate of 45 percent was therefore even exceeded with a result of almost 47 percent. The campaign is supported and co-sponsored by the Federal Ministry for Climate Action, the Austrian Association of Cities and Towns, the Austrian Association of Municipalities, the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber, the Austrian Municipal Waste Management Associations, the Austrian collection and recycling systems for used portable batteries, representatives of industry and representatives of the food trade (Hofer, Lidl, REWE Group and Spar).

Positive response to the repair voucher

Two years after its introduction, the one million mark in the number of vouchers redeemed has already been broken this year, meaning that many electrical appliances have been saved from being thrown away. Smartphones, dishwashers, washing machines, laptops and coffee machines were repaired first and foremost. Due to its popularity, the federal repair bonus funding campaign will be continued next year and provided with new funds. With the increase, citizens can continue to have their faulty appliances repaired and make the repair an alternative to buying a new one. Service and maintenance services can now also be subsidized by the repair bonus. Regular maintenance can significantly extend the service life of appliances. Since September 16^th 2024, repairs to bicycles and bicycle trailers have also been subsidized. Despite the positive development, the age and associated energy consumption of the appliance should also be taken into consideration when claiming the repair bonus. Because repairs don’t always make sense in every case.

Out of the residual waste

Awareness-raising measures are also still needed for the collection of old electrical appliances. As before, too many electrical appliances end up in residual waste. Therefore, our appeal: WEEE and batteries have no place in residual waste, nor in the hands of illegal collectors. They can be handed in at any time in shops and/or at one of the 2,000 municipal collection points. You can find your nearest collection point here: https://www.elektro-ade.at/en/collection/collection-centres/.

The current activity report of the EAK with the detailed collection results 2023 is available for download at https://www.eak-austria.at/.