A government-subsidised programme to encourage recycling of material from old televisions has begun in earnest over the whole South Island. The programme will not, however, extend to computer monitors.
The TV TakeBack programme will provide collection points to which people can take used televisions for recycling, at a cost of $5, thanks to a subsidy from government’s Waste Minimisation Fund.
The programme is designed primarily to cope with the televisions that will be disposed of as a consequence of the switch-off of the analogue TV service, which will happen later this month in most of the South Island and from September to December for the rest of the country.
The first stage of TV TakeBack took place in the West Coast of the South Island and Hawke’s Bay, which went digital last year. During this stage of the programme, more than 20,000 televisions were dropped off for recycling.
“Hawke’s Bay and the West Coast have set the standard for the rest of the country,” says ICT Minister Amy Adams.
“The willingness of residents in these regions to recycle their televisions means hundreds of tonnes of waste will now be recycled and re-used in other products, rather than go to landfill.”
Some components, such as copper wire and aluminium, can be recycled locally, while others are sent to accredited recycling facilities overseas.
All participating recyclers must follow the Ministry for the Environment’s guidelines for collecting and recycling e-waste, or the Australian-New Zealand Standard for collection, storage, transport and treatment of electrical and electronic equipment.
TV TakeBack itself will not subsidise disposal of computer monitors, says a spokesman for Adams. Many TV recycling companies will accept monitors, but the government subsidy will not apply.
For information about where televisions can be taken to be recycled, visit: www.tvtakeback.govt.nz/where-can-i-recycle