RCN e-Cycle recycles over 17,000 TV’s during TV TakeBack

RCN e-Cycle has collected 17,316 televisions for recycling during Phase 1 of TV TakeBack which wrapped up on February 28th*.

TV TakeBack is a nationwide programme funded by the Waste Minimisation Fund to stop TVs being dumped in landfills during the digital switchover. Phase 1 covered the first regions to switch to a digital signal; the West Coast and Hawke’s Bay.

RCN e-Cycle spokesperson Karen Driver said the wave of TVs flooding in for recycling had been like nothing the RCN e-Cycle sites had ever experienced before, especially during the free period.

“We were dealing with massive volumes of around 1,000 TV’s a day. It was really hard work for our team, but very satisfying to know that we were preventing all those TVs being dumped in the landfill or at the roadside.”

The latest figures* show that RCN e-Cycle sites collected 85% of TV’s recycled so far under TV TakeBack.

Ms Driver said the foresight of the Minister in using funding from the Waste Minimisation Fund to help set up the RCN e-Cycle network had paid off.

“In the last 2.5 years we have set up 50 depots around the country, making it possible to deal with the huge surge in demand for TV recycling which comes with the digital switch-over.
“It means we don’t have to start from scratch, we already have the people and operational capacity to assist the Government in rolling out TV TakeBack.”

Ms Driver said the South Island RCN e-Cycle depots** are getting ready to deal with increasing volumes of recycled TV’s over the next six weeks. The rest of the South Island will be the next region to switch to digital on April 28th.

Ms Driver said the partnership between Government, councils, businesses and community recyclers is giving people the opportunity to recycle their TVs at a low cost.”

TVs contain toxic materials which can potentially leach from landfills. Recycling TVs safely ensures that the toxic materials are disposed of safely, and resources are extracted for reuse.

The Government has yet to announce the details of Phase 2 of TV TakeBack, but it is expected to be in place when the rest of the South Island switches over on April 28th. The rest of the North Island will complete the digital switchover by the end of the year.

ENDS

© Scoop Media