Norway tops Europe’s e-waste league table, UK in second
Norwegians are the biggest culprits in Europe when it comes to electronic waste, or e-waste, guilty of generating an estimated 57kg per household annually – the same weight as six microwave ovens. That’s according to research from Clear It Waste Removal.
The UK is in second position with British households guilty of producing an estimated 55kg of e-waste per year. Considering that there are 27.8 million households in the UK, the collective electronic waste could potentially be 1,529,000,000kg – the equivalent weight of 1,274,17 London double-decker buses!
Irish households produce an estimated average of 52.4kg of e-waste every year and therefore are in third spot. Irish household electronic waste is comparable to the weight of five adult bicycles.
In fourth place is Switzerland – the Swiss generate an estimated 51.5kg per household. With 3.9 million private households in Switzerland, the overall household e-waste in the country could equate to 200,850,000kg – approximately the same weight as 6974 Apollo 11 Rockets!
Other European countries whose households produce more than 45kg of e-waste include Spain (49.4kg), Netherlands (47.5kg), Cyprus (47kg), France (46.2kg) and Luxembourg (45.4kg), respectively ranking fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth.
On the other end in 39th position is Moldova. Moldovans are the champions of generating the least electronic waste in Europe at an average estimate of 11.6kg per household each year.
Tips for reducing electronic waste
Clear It Waste Removal has recommended those seeking to reduce their household e-waste to postpone upgrading their electronics for as long as possible stating ‘people frequently upgrade to the latest tech to be on trend despite their current device working perfectly. Unfortunately, it’s this trend hopping culture which contributes dramatically to the amount of e-waste on our planet.’
If you must upgrade your tech, Clear It Waste Removal has stressed on disposing of your e-waste in a specialised recycling facility or donating/selling your electronics to others. Clear It Waste Removal has also published a handy guide on disposing of your e-waste.
