TV dumping soars with digital switchover

This month thousands of homeowners in the UK are dumping old TVs and switching to new sets as the digital switchover sweeps through the country.  Veolia Environmental Services has seen a rise of up to 43% in parts of the UK from residents recycling old analogue boxes.

In Birmingham, Veolia saw an increase of around 2,222 extra TVs per month being deposited at Household Waste Recycling Centres over the three month period in the lead up to the switchover, and a similar pattern is expected in London as it completes the switchover today.

But did you know that up to 95% of a TV can be recycled!

• Glass from the screen can be transformed into bunker sand for golf courses
• Plastic casing that houses the components can be melted into new electronic items, such as new TVs, mobile phones and computers
• Copper around the electron gun can be recycled into cabling for home appliances including toasters, kettles and lighting
• Degaussing wire that sits around the front of the screen is high grade iron that can to be recycled into metal goods, such as nails, nuts and bolts

Tom Spaul, Chief Operating Officer and Executive Director at Veolia Environmental Services said “We have seen a domino effect across the country with a rise of people recycling TV sets due to the digital switchover. We want to remind everyone it is important that they bring down their old TVs to a local site so they can be recycled into something new. Maybe even a new television!”

Other increases have been detected by Veolia in areas such as Nottinghamshire, Merseyside and Sheffield where, on each occasion, we experienced increases above 20% for the three months following switchover.

Londoners threw away 18,000 tonnes of electrical waste in the past 12 months, a significant proportion of which ended up in landfill , but with the majority of TV parts able to be recycled, this is an ideal opportunity to take your old TV set to a Household Waste Recycling Centre.

From Veolia's website