The producer is the actor who possesses the producer responsibility, and this responsibility cannot be transferred to another party, except in the case of an authorised representative.

However, the producer may choose to have a collective scheme perform many of the practical tasks associated with producer responsibility. Affiliation with such a collective system provides a number of logistical economies of scale in the collection and treatment of electrical waste.

Recipo is a collective scheme registered with DPA-System for the collection of electrical waste. We can perform many of the tasks that are otherwise the responsibility of the individual producer, such as:

  • Picking up the producer’s assigned amount of household scrap at municipal collection centres
  • Providing a return logistics system for end-users of business equipment on behalf of the producer
  • Providing approved handling/treatment and disposal of electronic waste in an environmentally sustainable manner
  • Reporting the annual amounts of WEEE that have been collected and disposed of on behalf of the producer
  • Providing financial collateral for the future costs of transporting and handling electronic waste.

Electrical waste contains a number of hazardous substances and valuable materials, so it is important that it is correctly collected and processed. When electronics are recycled, it is possible to build up secondary materials that can replace new materials in new production.

The manufacturing of electronic products is material and energy-intensive. Oil is usually used in the manufacture of plastic parts, and printed circuit boards use metals that are extracted from mines. The processes involve the emission of greenhouse gases and other pollutants harmful to the environmental and health, both locally and globally. The production of a new computer, for example, requires 240 kg of fossil fuels, 22 kg of chemicals and 1,500 kg of water. A high collection rate for electronic waste means increased material recycling and a consequent reduction in the environmental impact of new production.

In order to make it easy for consumers to deliver their electrical and electronic waste, we also collect through the retail outlets of our affiliated manufacturers.