What is e-waste?
E-waste is any item with a plug, battery or power cord that’s no longer working or wanted. It covers a whole range of items from phones and refrigerators to fluorescent light tubes.
E-waste can include:
Electrical and electronic tools
- Batteries
- Drills
- Lawn mowers
- Saws
- Sewing machines
IT, telecommunications and TV equipment
- Computers
- Laptops
- Mobile phones
- Printers
- Remote controls
- Televisions
Home appliances (large)
- Air conditioners
- Cookers
- Electric fans
- Microwaves
- Refrigerators
- Washing machines
Home appliances (small)
- Coffee machines
- Hair dryers
- Irons
- Toasters
- Watches
Lighting equipment
- Compact fluorescent lamps
- Discharge lamps
- Fluorescent lamps
- High-intensity LEDs
Other items
- Automatic dispensers
- Medical devices
- Printer cartridges
- Thermostats
Toys, leisure and sports equipment
- Amplifiers
- Consoles
- Hand-held video games
- Musical instruments
- Radios
- Toys like electric trains and racing cars
Advice for businesses
Using a waste removal provider
If your business generates e-waste that cannot be managed through one of the free recycling schemes mentioned above, check with your current waste removal provider to see if they can collect it. If not, you may need to contact a specialist e-waste collection business.
To ensure you enlist a reputable operator that will transfer your e-waste to a fully-accredited reprocessor, it’s worth checking what certifications the reprocessor has.
Externally audited certifications to look out for include:
- EPA Licence – Issued by the Environment Protection Authority Victoria for businesses that reprocess more than 500 tonnes of e-waste.
- AS/NZS 5377:2013 –The Australian and New Zealand Standard for the collection, storage, transport and treatment of end-of-life electrical and electronic equipment.
- Responsible Recycling (R2: 2013) standard – Issued by the American National Standards Institute.
Implement a workplace e-waste plan
The first step of implementing a successful e-waste plan is to understand the types of e-waste your business or organisation produces, or is likely to produce. This will help you formulate a plan to manage it in a secure and cost-effective way.
Start by considering:
- What kind of e-waste do you produce?
- How much do you produce, per month, per quarter, per year?
- Where is your e-waste located?
- What asset management plans do you have in place?
- Do you have someone in the business responsible for managing e-waste?
- What e-waste services do you currently use?
Once you know what e-waste you produce and need to dispose of, you can identify suitable options.
Follow EPA's guidelines for how to handle e-waste in the workplace.
Vendor takeback
The best way to address the issue of e-waste is to minimise the amount we create in the first place.
Another scheme businesses can use to minimise their e-waste is vendor takeback.
This is where the supplier who sold you the piece of equipment collects it after it has reached the end of its useful life or when you no longer need it. Even if you’re buying equipment from a new supplier, it’s worth asking if they can collect your old items.