Recycling of electronic devices is extended

Thanks to the separate collection and recycling of old appliances, valuable materials such as gold, copper, aluminum, iron or recyclable plastic components can be recovered using the appropriate recycling technologies. The Federal Council writes that the revision of the ordinance will help to strengthen the recycling of old appliances and thus close the resource cycle. According to the revised VREG, rare technology metals such as neodymium or tantalum should now be recovered if the necessary processes exist.

What is now covered by recycling?

The scope of the Ordinance on the VREG is to be extended to all electrical and electronic devices from January 1, 2022. According to the information provided, this includes medical devices, monitoring and control instruments, dispensing machines and photovoltaic modules in particular, which will fall under the VREG in future. The Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) will publish a list of the devices concerned, according to the Federal Council's press release. The fact that the provisions of the WEEE now also apply to equipment from vehicles, buildings and objects that can be removed with reasonable effort also increases the potential for recovering recyclable components.

The revised package of ordinances states that there is no longer a specific division into appliance categories in the WEEE. The reason given for this is that, as part of the disposal process, appliances are not grouped by category but by component and the substances they contain in various treatment streams. Treatment streams are designed to concentrate target materials - these can be recyclable materials or pollutants - in as pure a form as possible. This allows them to be better recycled (materially or energetically) or disposed of, as the Federal Office for the Environment emphasizes.

Financing solution postponed

It is also announced that, due to the ongoing discussions on the parliamentary initiative 20.433 "Strengthening the Swiss circular economy", the aspects relating to the future financing solution for the collection and disposal of electrical and electronic equipment within the framework of the VREG will be postponed. As soon as Parliament's work has been completed, the Federal Department of Economic Affairs and Energy will analyze whether the VREG should be revised again with regard to the future financing system, according to the concluding statement.

Source: the Federal Council/rs