Climate Change – Weather in Ireland

On By JMCEIn Electronic and Electrical Recycling2 Comments

Some Simple Facts

Climate change is making our weather more extreme and sometimes dangerous. On Feb 16th 2026, RTE reported that, it has rained every day so far in 2026 at the Valentia Observatory in Co Kerry, a continuous run of 46 days which included serval Met Éireann weather warnings.

Storm Names

In 2017, Hurricane Ophelia was one of the strongest storms ever to hit Ireland.

  • 3 people lost their lives
  • Over 360,000 homes lost electricity
  • Schools and businesses closed
  • Winds reached over 150 km/h

It was unusual because really strong hurricanes almost never reach Ireland— but warmer Atlantic waters helped power it.

In 2021 and 2022 hot, dry weather led to large wildfires in places including Sleeve Donard and Killarney National Park.

In July 2022, Ireland recorded temperatures above 33°C — extremely hot for our country. Heatwaves are becoming more common, lasting longer, with hotter, drier spells leading to an expectation of wildfires.  

Storm Damage Ireland

What is means in simple words:

The Earth is getting hotter because of pollution from cars, planes, factories, and cutting down forests. This pollution traps heat around our planet, like a thick blanket.

Because of this:

Bigger Rain & Floods: Warm air holds more water. That means when it rains, it can pour much harder than before. Some places (like parts of Ireland) could see over 20% more winter rain. More rain equals more flooding.

Stronger Storms: Storms are getting more powerful, especially over the North Atlantic. Stronger winds and heavier rain can damage homes and knock out power.

Weather Warmings

Hotter Days: The last 10 years have been the hottest ever recorded. 2024 and 2025 were the hottest years worldwide. Summers are getting even hotter, and heatwaves are happening more often. This can make people sick, harm animals, and damage crops.

Droughts in Some Places: While some areas flood, others get less rain and much hotter summers. This can lead to droughts, water shortages, and wildfires.

Rising Sea Levels: Ice in cold places is melting, and warmer water expands. This makes sea levels rise. That means more coastal flooding and beaches slowly disappearing.

Why This Matters to YOU

This isn’t just about the future — it’s happening now. It affects:

  • The air you breathe
  • The food you eat
  • The places you live and play
  • The life you live is disrupted including work, school, sport, and social events
  • The livelihoods of individuals and families are threatened
Cycle to School

What can we do? You are not “too young or too old” to make a difference. Here are powerful things you can do:

  • Walk, cycle, or carpool when possible
  • Turn off lights and unplug chargers
  • Reduce, reuse, recycle
  • Eat more plant-based meals
  • Talk about climate change at school and home
  • Join or start a climate club
  • Take part in tree-planting or clean-up events

Small actions, create big change when millions of people do them. We are the generation that can help protect the planet so make a difference now!

About Recycle IT

Recycle IT is a not-for-profit social enterprise providing collection and drop-off services for all types of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). Yearly Recycle IT offered drop-off and collection services to thousands of homes and organisations across Dublin and surrounding areas collecting a range of WEEE which includes thousands of computers, televisions, toasters, cables, lawnmowers, monitors, microwaves and kettles.

Recycle IT services are provided in partnership with WEEE Ireland. Recycle IT is supported by South Dublin County Council and authorized by the National Waste Collection Permit Office and the local authorities across Leinster.

Visit our website for further details.

Bike Reuse or Recycling

On By JMCEIn Electronic and Electrical RecyclingLeave a comment

Recycling for Good

Got an old bike sitting in the shed collecting dust? Or maybe your kids have outgrown theirs and it’s been left in the garden for years? Instead of letting it rust away, why not recycle it?

Recycling is a safe and easy way to get rid of bikes you no longer need — whether it’s a pedal bike, electric bike, or electric scooter. And the good news is, Recycle IT are happy to help you every step of the way. ♻️

Bikes for Recycling at Recycle IT

Bike Reuse

The best thing to do with an old bike you no longer want is to offer it for reuse – whether you give it, sell or donate it. Even if it’s broken and you can’t repair it, someone else might be able to.

If your bicycle is still in working order, give it to someone you know. If you don’t know anyone looking for a bargain or free bike, then consider selling on places like Donedeal, or listing it on Facebook Community Page

You can also donate working and broken bikes to some charities. You can check locally for a list of charity shops in your area, that may take your old bike.

Kids Bikes for Recycling

Bike Repair for Reuse

If your bike needs repairing, there are community organisations that will refurbish and repurpose your bicycle. These include organisations like The Rediscovery Centre. They repair bicycles for reuse. Front Line Bikes in Dublin is another organisation accepting bikes for reuse. They can help get your unwanted bikes to those who really need them.

What Happens to Old Bikes

The most common bike frame is made from steel – it’s sturdy, strong, and reasonably lightweight. It’s also eco-friendly, as 100% of steel can be recycled. Steel can be reused used to make countless products including food cans, cars and even new bike parts. Steel can be melted down and reused over and over again. Recycle IT are happy to be able to recycle your old bikes, steel bike frame and component parts. In fact, we accept all types of metal from around the home, for example, metal gates, metal basketball stands and metal trampolines. (metal only, not fabric material or plastic).

Bikes, manufactured from other types of metal – like aluminum or titanium – can be safely recycled at Recycle IT. You can also safely recylce old steel, aluminum or titanium bikes or scooter which are 100% electric (battery operated).

Scooter Recycling

About Recycle IT

Recycle IT is a not-for-profit social enterprise providing collection and drop-off services for all types of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). Yearly Recycle IT offered drop-off and collection services to thousands of homes and organisations across Dublin and surrounding areas collecting a range of WEEE which includes thousands of computers, televisions, toasters, cables, lawnmowers, monitors, microwaves and kettles.

Recycle IT services are provided in partnership with WEEE Ireland. Recycle IT is supported by South Dublin County Council and authorized by the National Waste Collection Permit Office and the local authorities across Leinster.

Visit our website for further details.

Old Bike for Recycling

Moving Tips – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

On By JMCEIn Awards, Climate change, Collections, Computer Recycling, Dublin, Electronic and Electrical RecyclingLeave a comment

Moving House, Apartment or Office

According to the Central Statistics Office, in 2022, 265,098 people moved home in Ireland, with 29% of movers changing counties and 5% of residents moving to a new property, Dublin city and suburbs was the area with the highest proportion of movers (30%) within or to the area.

Moving home is widely considered one of life’s most stressful experiences. It often appears alongside events like job changes and major life transitions in surveys about stress. There’s a lot to juggle at once — packing, paperwork, deadlines, costs, and the emotional side of leaving a familiar place — so it’s no surprise many people feel overwhelmed.  

They surveyed 2000 people who had moved home over a three year period revealed 61% of those surveyed placed the ordeal at the top of their stress list, so it’s true, moving is stressful. Source: E. ON.

Legal & General conducted a seperate survey related to the motivation and pressure of moving. They report; almost half of respondents (47%) experienced increased stress levels because of moving.  41% of adults experienced anxiety, sleep deprivation (31%) and arguments with their partner (25%). One key stress-inducing factor was time, with 46% of home buyers having to wait between three and five months to complete their move.

Stress Points

Some of that stress might be caused by the fact that removal firms unusually work out the cost for your move by the volume of items that you have to transport to your new location.

Reducing your volume prior to the move should save you money and creates an opportunity to de-clutter through reuse or recycling. In fact, it creates a wonderful opportunity to list and remove items that are broken or unneeded. It’s an excellent motivator to share unwanted items with others or recycle items no longer required.

It’s a good idea to start with storage areas such as the spare rooms, the attic, basement, garage or store in the weeks before your move, as removal teams will want to do a pre-move checklist of your belongings. This helps determine how much stuff needs to be moved and gives an idea of wants involved in moving!

What to Recycle

People are still surprised by the number of objects that can be recycled. Recycling goes way beyond the glass, plastic, paper, and tins that your waste company collects. Commonly recycled items include furniture, clothing, electrical goods, batteries, bulbs, or old toys. home-office equipment, metal cabinets or lockers.  These can all be recycled prior to moving.

2019 moving a cooker
Moving / Recycling Electrical Equipment

Recycled appliances like phones, kettles, cables, dryers, computers, servers or washing machines can be repurposed or their components can be removed and converted into new products.

Recycling allows home movers to clear out old items and reduce the cost of the removal, protect our environment and conserve natural resources. Remember this logic can be applied to moving from any location including an office, warehouse, doctor’s surgery or shop.

10 Moving Tip

Old Storage Heater for Recycling
  1. In the weeks and days leading up to your move, use up perishables including food and cleaning products and recycle plastic containers before your moving date.
  2. All electronics and electrical equipment (e.g. computers, toasters, heaters or kettles) contain some precious metallic elements like gold, silver, copper, and aluminium that can be reused. Recycling these items saves valuable new resources.
  3. Petrol, paint, and oils should be disposed of before moving home. Many removal companies will not move your petrol lawnmower if it is not emptied of all petrol and oil and paint are heavy and will cost you money to move.
  4. Fuel such as coal or oil should be included in the lease, house sale or used well in advance of moving.
  5. Kids’ toys, clothes or bikes can be offered to charity shops, social enterprises, family shelters or housing projects. If damaged they are recycled at civic amenity recycling centres. Some recycling centres accept a range of items manufactured from plastics, metals, and wood.
  6. Following your move, you have lots of packing boxes. The boxes may be supplied by moving company so they can be given back. If not the boxes are most likely to be made from recyclable materials, so they should be able to be added to your paper recycling bin. If you have a large number that will not fit, they can be taken to your nearest civic amenity site.
  7. Take pictures of wire connections on electronic equipment such as computers, printer and wireless router as it will help you set them up at your new home.
  8. Label boxes by room and number them to ensure you have them all on arrival at your house.
  9. Make sure you have lots of help at hand to pack and lift boxes and equipment.
  10. Finally, there may be items that you wish to dispose of but it may not be easy to find a recycler! Here are 10 community-based organizations that can help to reduce your belongings before you move.

About Recycle IT

Recycle IT is an award-winning, not-for-profit, social enterprise established in 2003 to create employment and promote environmental awareness through recycling and reuse. We work in partnership with WEEE Ireland and are authorized by your local authority to provide electrical, electronic and pure metal recycling collections across Dublin since 2007. Recycle IT are fully compliant with WEEE Recycling Requirements and permit details are available here.

For more information about Recycle IT please click here.

Sustainable Business Impact Award Winner 2025

 

 

Cleaning Up E-Waste

On By JMCEIn Awards, Climate change, Electronic and Electrical Recycling, Green Technology, Plastic, Social Enterprise, sustainabilityLeave a comment

Process that transforms Hazardous Plastic

For many years, electrical and electronic waste (also known as e-waste) has been building up across Europe and around the world.

A lot of this waste includes plastics that contain chemicals such as flame retardants. While these chemicals are important for fire safety, they have made plastics very difficult to recycle. Because of this, much of this plastic has been treated as hazardous waste and sent for disposal instead of reuse.

PLAST2bCLEANED machinery

© PLAST2bCLEANED

A new project – PLAST2bCLEANED

This helpful project has developed a new recycling method that safely removes these harmful chemicals from plastic. This makes it possible to recover clean, high-quality plastic, as well as valuable materials like bromine and antimony trioxide. This supports Europe’s goal of creating a circular, closed-loop recycling system.

Instead of shredding plastic into lower-quality material, the process uses heat and special solvents to fully dissolve the plastic. The harmful additives are then separated out, leaving behind clean plastic that can be reused again and again in manufacturing.

Based in the Netherlands, the PLAST2bCLEANED project shows real progress in reducing environmental damage and lowering Europe’s reliance on imported raw materials, especially antimony*, which is considered a critical resource.

* Antimony is a metalloid, which means it has properties of both metals and non-metals. Antimony is utilized in various applications, including:

  • Alloys: It is commonly added to lead and tin alloys to improve their properties, making them suitable for use in batteries, solders, and bullets.
  • Flame Retardants: Antimony trioxide is a key component in flame retardants used in textiles and plastics including plastics use in electrical products.
  • Semiconductors: It is used as a dopant in semiconductor devices, enhancing their electrical properties.

New EU Regulation

A new era of EU regulation is changing how products are made and recycled. New rules now require manufacturers to use more recycled materials, including valuable substances like bromine and antimony.

Digital Product Passports will also track how clean and recyclable materials are over a product’s lifetime. At the same time, the EU wants to recycle more of its own critical raw materials to reduce reliance on imports.

Technologies like PLAST2bCLEANED will play a key role in supporting a circular economy.

Digital Product Passport

Read more at: Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), and Critical Raw Materials Act

Original post shared by Directorate-General for Environment: Visit here.

About Recylce IT

Recycle IT is an award-winning, not-for-profit, social enterprise established in 2003 to create employment and promote environmental awareness through recycling and reuse. We work in partnership with WEEE Ireland and are authorized by your local authority to provide electrical, electronic and pure metal recycling collections across Dublin since 2007. Recycle IT are fully compliant with WEEE Recycling Requirements and permit details are available here.

For more information about Recycle IT please click here.

Sustainable Business Impact Award Winner 2025

Electronic Trends and More 2026

On By JMCEIn Electronic and Electrical RecyclingLeave a comment

Tech Trends

According to eMarketer, the Europe’s business landscape is set to remain heavily technology-driven over the next four years as organizations invest to stay competitive and address growing operational challenges in an increasingly uncertain market environment.

Photo by Tom Swinnen on Pexels.com

Overall ICT spending across Europe is projected to exceed $1.4 trillion by 2026, reflecting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.4% from 2021 to 2026.

A Financial Times report for 2026 shows sector trends for Small Domestic Appliances (SDA) will grow, IT & Office will see modest gains, Major Domestic Appliances remain stable, and Telecom and Consumer Electronics experience slight declines.

Banking and professional services will continue to be a large spending sectors while business in general plans to investment in telecom services and IT hardware.

Photo by Curtis Adams on Pexels.com

Battery and vape waste is one of the fastest-growing sectors. But it hold major risks. With lithium-ion battery-related fires on the rise, proper waste segregation at home and in the work place isn’t just good practice, it can save lives by reducing chances of fires in waste vehicles and at recycling facilities.

What this means for IT Equipment Recycling:

This projected surge in ICT spending signals a significant increase in the purchase and deployment of new hardware, infrastructure, and digital systems. As organisations upgrade to newer technologies, several key recycling implications emerge:

Higher Volume of Retired Equipment: More investment means more frequent refresh cycles, resulting in increased disposal of legacy devices—including servers, PCs, networking gear, and mobile devices.

Growing Demand for Secure & Compliant Disposal: With stricter European regulations (such as GDPR, WEEE, and sustainability directives), companies will require certified recycling partners to ensure responsible handling and secure data destruction.

Sustainability as a Business Priority: ESG and circular economy commitments will push companies to reuse, refurbish, and recycle more IT equipment instead of landfilling.

Rise of the Secondary Market: Quality refurbished IT equipment will gain value, extending device lifecycles and reducing environmental impact.

Opportunity for ITAD Providers: IT Asset Disposition and recycling businesses will see stronger demand for services like collection, certified recycling, remarketing, and reporting.

Old Computers

Bottom line

As Europe’s tech and appliance spending accelerates, the recycling of IT equipment becomes not just a regulatory necessity but a strategic business function—supporting sustainability goals, cost optimization, data security, safety, and environmental responsibility.

Businesses need clear direction and confidence that their electronic waste is being managed safely and responsibly at every stage of the process. By partnering with a fully permitted, experienced provider like Recycle IT, organisations gain peace of mind—knowing compliance is met, risks are reduced, and materials are handled, treated, and disposed of to the highest standards.

Server Racking for Dismantling and Removal

About Recylce IT

Recycle IT is an award-winning, not-for-profit, social enterprise established in 2003 to create employment and promote environmental awareness through recycling and reuse. We work in partnership with WEEE Ireland and are authorized by your local authority to provide electrical, electronic and pure metal recycling collections across Dublin since 2007. Recycle IT are fully compliant with WEEE Recycling Requirements and permit details are available here.

For more information about Recycle IT please click here.

Sustainable Business Impact Award Winner 2025