The e-Waste Association of South Africa’s (eWasa) national e-waste collection day is taking place on 1 February.

Community members are invited to bring broken electronics, gadgets and appliances to be safely refurbished or recycled. Drop-offs for e-Waste are available nation-wide at most Makro stores. CFLs, printer cartridges and batteries can be dropped off at all Pick n Pay stores.

Why is recycling e-waste important?

Heavy metals that are found in electronics can cause groundwater contamination if disposed of in landfills. Copper, gold, aluminium, lead and mercury can all be recovered by recycling e-waste.

Only 11% of e-waste in South Africa is recycled, but the world produces 20 – 50 million tons of e-waste every year. One e-waste plant can recycle 1 100 tons of waste, creating 34 jobs.

What is e-waste?

If it has a plug or runs on batteries and is broken, it is e-waste.