Schools, charities, community groups, and small businesses are invited to recycle or host an electrical recycling collection at their location over the summer starting May 8th 2023.
This initiative aims to divert waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) from offices and staff homes for recycling and is an opportunity to have a free WEEE from Work collection.
Mixed Electrical Equipment
Recycle IT – Recycling Electrical, Electronic, and Metal Items
The idea is to set up a temporary small WEEE collection point or containers in a central area of each school, community group or business to encourage recyclers to get into the habit of diverting more office and domestic electrical items away from the general waste bin.
Your colleagues, volunteers, students or project participants can easily take part. All you need to do is make people aware and reinforce the WEEE recycling message at every opportunity, then watch the container or box fill up.
Recycle IT will accept all types of electrical and pure metal equipment including older items once used and loved in the office, school classroom or canteen.
Close the Loop – Recycle IT
How it works
Our team can recycle all the old or unused small waste electrical and electronic equipment collected at your office in Dublin for “free” with Recycle IT. Once you let us know, our team will pick up full containers or boxes of old, damaged or unused electrical, electronic or pure metal items. Just email us quoting FREEMAYRIT
From experience, items will be small and medium size and found at home or in small offices. Click here to see a list.
Recycle IT – Recycling Electrical Equipment in Dublin
Success this Year!
Recycle IT want to say a huge well done to over 200 schools, charities and community groups who have already participated in WEEE recycling collections so far in 2023. We really enjoy working with you and ask that you spread the word to others!
School and community recyclers in 2023 include:
St.Decalns College, Dublin 7.
St. Christopher’s Primary School, Dublin 4.
Sophia Housing Association, Dublin 8.
Terenure College, Dublin, D6W.
FIT, Dublin 11.
Tuath Housing, Dublin 12.
Dublin Simon Community Dublin 20.
About Recycle IT
Recycle IT is an award-winning not-for-profit social enterprise providing a collection and drop-off service for all types of waste electrical, electronic and metal items. Recycle IT offer drop-off and collection services to both homes and organizations in Dublin and surrounding areas collecting a range of WEEE which includes thousands of printers and we can help recycle yours!
Our electrical community collection service is provided in partnership with WEEE Ireland. Recycle IT is supported by Pobal, South Dublin County Council and authorized by the National Waste Collection Permit Office and the local authorities across Leinster.
To speak with Recycle IT please call 01 4578321 or email us here
The Irish government can make national changes and introduce initiatives which can help reduce the effects of Climate Change but as individuals, living in Ireland we also contribute daily to carbon emissions.
Here are some things you can do to reduce your personal impact.
At Home
Insulation is a key step in making your home more comfortable and energy efficient. SEAI grants can help you to insulate your walls and attic to reduce heat loss and your heating bills. Attic insulation, cavity wall insulation, internal Insulation or dry lining and external wall insulation all can help.
Learn more about the different types of insulation for your home. You can also download our homeowner’s guides to insulation. They will give you all the information you need about creating a cosier home.
All homeowners, including private landlords, whose homes were built and occupied before 2011 can apply. This is defined as the date your electricity meter was installed.
Otheroptionla for your home includes floor Insulation, insulation of windows and doors, installation of a heat pump, updated heating controls or moving to solar heating or solar electricity panels. This all helps improve your home energy usage and therefore Ireland’s energy usage.
Learn about the grant values and how to apply here
While Travelling
The travel industry is responsible for approx. 8% of total global emissions so every action you take to curb your travel footprint is worthwhile. Here are some tips to consider ahead of your next trip.
Cars are a major source of carbon emissions so try to eliminate the car from travel plans. It’s one of the best things you can do for reducing your carbon footprint. (You could consider the same for the daily commute or reduce the number of daily commutes).
Use green public transport
Book electric taxis
Don’t fly to nearby destinations or within a small country like Ireland.
Fly economy to lower your carbon footprint
Pack small and light (all the time).
If you going a greater distance book a non-stop flight
Visit fewer locations while on a trip – enjoy the location you are in!
Limit the use of air conditioning and charging equipment
Stay at an Eco- Friendly location – places where people care about the environment.
Finally, calculate your own travel carbon footprint here
Wasting Food
In 2022 the Irish EPA said, food waste is a global problem that has environmental, social and economic consequences.
More than one-quarter of the food produced globally is wasted. It is a significant contributor to climate change, as food loss and waste contribute to 8-10% of greenhouse gas emissions.
Growing, processing and transporting food all use significant amounts of resources such as land, water and energy.
The EPA estimates that Ireland generated 770,300 tonnes (t) of food waste[2] in 2020.
Source: EPA – Food Supply Chain
What to do?
Stop Food Waste is a national campaign to give you information and tips on how to make the most of your food and avoid food waste.
Reducing food waste is an easy action you can take to save money, save time, and lessen your impact on the environment.
As a starting point, we can all follow the A-Z of Foods. This is a useful resource with top tips and techniques to best manage food at home in order to prevent food waste.
It takes 3,781 litres of water to make one pair of jeans, according to the UN’s Environment Programme, taking into account cotton production, manufacture, transport and washing.
Mass-market fast fashion may soon stop for European shoppers, with the EU saying it plans to implement new regulations to limit the wasteful trend and encourage fashion sustainability.
The proposal by the EU calls for minimum use of recycled fibres by 2030 and a ban on the destruction of many unsold fashion products.
The European Commission regulations also seek to contain the release of microplastics and improve global labour conditions in the garment industry.
But as fashion shoppers what can we do now?
Well, The Guardian Newspaper has come up with a fast fashion fix: 20 ways to stop buying new clothes forever. Click here to have a read and change your ways.
You will find 7 quick tips below
Buy less and more durable clothes—choose slow-fashion
Avoid fast-fashion companies and support small local businesses instead;
Rent clothes you’re only likely to wear once;
Buy pre-owned items;
Swap clothes with friends;
Repair and upcycle your clothes;
Resell or give clothes for free online.
What Next?
Ireland Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021 requires Ireland to achieve a 51% reduction in emissions by 2030, relative to 2018 levels, and net-zero emissions by 2050. We all must do more and learn more to help. To get up to speed please visit the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications. Click here.
About Recycle IT
Recycle IT is an award-winning not-for-profit social enterprise providing a collection and drop-off service for all types of waste electrical, electronic and metal items. Recycle IT offer drop-off and collection services to both homes and organizations in Dublin and surrounding areas collecting a range of WEEE which includes thousands of printers and we can help recycle yours!
Our electrical community collection service is provided in partnership with WEEE Ireland. Recycle IT is supported by Pobal, South Dublin County Council and authorized by the National Waste Collection Permit Office and the local authorities across Leinster.
To speak with Recycle IT please call 01 4578321 or email us here
One of Ireland’s first district heating programmes has started operating in Tallaght, south Dublin.
The Tallaght District Heating Scheme takes waste heat from an Amazon data centre and uses it to heat South Dublin County Council offices and the local library. This environmentally friendly initiative provides low-carbon heat to nearby public buildings.
The Scheme, which is the first of its kind not-for-profit, publicly owned District Heating Scheme in Ireland, will reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the South Dublin County area by approximately 1,500 tonnes per year in its first phase.
Tallaght District Heating Scheme Works are now completed. Source: Echo Newspaper
How it Works
The heat is carried by hot water pumped through a network of insulated pipes. The scheme will also serve 133 affordable apartments to be built on public land in Tallaght and a 3,500 sq/m innovation centre hosting tech start-ups on the same site.
The council says that over the lifetime of the scheme, it could also heat 2,000 to 3,000 apartments.
The objective of the scheme is to decrease greenhouse gas emissions associated with the use of fossil fuels for heating in the area in order to contribute to national-level renewable energy, energy efficiency and CO2 targets and establish Tallaght as a leader in innovation in the area of climate change.
District Heating Scheme, which officially opened by Minister for the Environment and Climate, Eamon RyanTD
Launch Event
The Minister for the Environment and Climate described the Tallaght scheme as “an example of the future being delivered today”.
Speaking at the launch of the project Eamon Ryan TD said the Government will soon publish a heat policy as part of its Climate Action Plan commitments.
“The delivery of heat is probably one of the most important in Climate, you don’t tend to see it, it’s not as visible or as high profile as transport or agriculture, as electricity generation but actually managing how we use to heat and how we keep heat in is probably the biggest change we need to make to keep our climate targets,” Minister Ryan says.
Video of Launch – RTE News
Donated
For the Tallaght project, Amazon Web Services (AWS) Ireland donates the waste heat from its data centre which is used to pipe water into the Heatworks Energy Centre next door.
Amazon Web Services, Ireland Country Manager Mike Beary says the company is very happy to be involved.
“We’ve been investing in Tallaght for 15 years. Amazon Web Services has been part of this community, and we’re very proud of our relationships with this community here. This is also a part of the drive to help Ireland meet its climate change targets for 2030.”
Future
Codema, the energy agency for Dublin, says most homes in the capital could be served by district heating systems by 2050.
Codema is the project partner with South Dublin County Council to develop the Tallaght District Heating Scheme (TDHS), which is the first large-scale district heating network of its kind in Ireland.
Waste heat from data centres, power stations and other industrial facilities will be one source but there is also a significant geothermal resource.
What are the Benefits?
Lower emissions and greater use of renewable energy
Hot water on demand 24/7 – very reliable system, no more worrying about leaving the immersion on!
No boiler in your home – more space, less maintenance
Improved air quality
Better Building Energy Ratings
Flexible system – future-proofed to provide heat from multiple renewable sources
Cost – The heat price will be competitive with alternative heating technologies
Energy Centre Tallaght, South Dublin
Funding
The scheme is funded by the European Union’s NWE Interreg HeatNet programme, a multi-million-euro fund for schemes that reduce CO2 emissions in Europe’s north-west, by €4.5 million from the Project Ireland 2040 Climate Action Fund and through direct funding from South Dublin County Council.
Phase one of the Tallaght District Heating Scheme will provide heat to over 32,800msq of public buildings including South Dublin County Council’s office headquarters and the TU Dublin Tallaght campus. During normal operation, the connected buildings will be warmed by heat generated at the data centre.
The subsequent phases of the project will facilitate the connection of other public, private, and residential customers in the Tallaght area including the proposed 133 affordable rental apartments in Tallaght, as well as further buildings within TU Dublin’s Tallaght Campus currently under construction.
About Recycle IT
Recycle IT is an award-winning not-for-profit social enterprise providing a collection and drop-off service for all types of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). Recycle IT provide drop off and collection services to thousands of homes and businesses across Dublin and surrounding areas collecting a range of WEEE which includes thousands of laptops, computers, cookers, cables, monitors, microwaves and TVs.
Recycle IT services are provided in partnership with WEEE Ireland. Recycle IT is supported by Pobal, South Dublin County Council and authorized by the National Waste Collection Permit Office and the local authorities in the Eastern-Midlands Waste Management Region.
The reality is nearly everything in a laptop computer can be recycled yet only 13% of people in the EU recycled old desktop computers and and figure drops to 10% for old laptops or tablets. 33% of people living in the EU keep once oved laptops and tablets, at home after use rather than recycling.
With our recycling initiative, we try to promote reuse first, but most of the computers, laptops servers and communication equipment we deal with are years out of date and beyond repair and reuse. Many have been sitting at home or in offices for years, some have had parts removed or are damaged beyond recovery on arrival but all the equipment can be safely recycled.
Laptops for Recycling
How a standard PC can be recycled:
Keyboards, mice, and other computer accessories are usually made of plastic and are recyclable. The plastic goes through a shredding process and is then sold on the commodities market as mixed plastic scrap.
Some recyclers use optical sorters that create a very clean stream of plastic, with minimal metal contamination. Usually, the plastic is further purified and compounded with virgin plastics and pelletized. This pelletized resin can then be used as a recycled-content plastic.
For example, Recycle IT operates in a supply chain where plastic is processed for reused – to make new parts – a process that has a smaller carbon footprint, lighter environmental footprint and can deliver a cost saving over manufacturing from new materials.
Computer and Laptops
Chassis/Base – these materials are primarily made of metal (PC Chassis) or what’s known as PC/ABS plastics, which are recyclable. Some laptops also feature carbon fibre mixed with polycarbonate plastics to keep the base cool to the touch. This material is not currently widely recycled, but it can be used in waste-to-energy processes.
Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs), processors, and memory – these are made of multiple types of plastics, fibreglass and precious metals that can be recycled. Scrap copper, precious metals like gold, and some other non-ferrous metals are commonly recovered from computer circuit boards and other components.
Personal Computer System Boards
Once these materials have been sorted out they go through more specialized processes, e.g., circuit boards first into copper recovery, followed by specialized refining of the residues to recover other metals. These processes are usually accomplished through smelting or sometimes through hydro-metallurgical processing via acids or cyanide compounds in order to recover gold and other precious metals.
Batteries – when computers and laptops come into our facilities, the battery is removed from the system manually. Once removed, batteries are separated, packaged safely, and sent for recycling. Once they reach their destination, the plastic casing is manually separated while the rest of the material is refined through a thermochemical process at high temperatures to separate various materials). The result is a metal alloy and a stony waste material separated from metals during the smelting: the metal alloys are further treated to recover cobalt, nickel, copper, and iron; lithium is typically concentrated in the stony waste material and is often recovered.
Computer cables
Cables – wire and cable that is not damaged can be reused directly. The high-grade copper can also be recovered by manually removing insulation with simple tools or by chopping wire into small pieces. After arriving at a specialised facility they undergo a hydrological process in which the small pieces of insulation float while the copper sinks. Unfortunately, the plastic insulation from the wire-chopping process is very hard to recycle and is usually sent to a waste-to-energy facility.
Screens – many manufacturers have stopped using mercury and arsenic in flat panel monitors making it easier to recycle display panels at their end-of-life. The recycling approach for LCD panels involves the separation of the glass substrate, polarizer foils, and the elements indium and copper into individual outputs. This process is carried out in Ireland, and we are delighted to be able to supply screens for safe recycling,
IT Equipment
Fans – made of plastics and metals, which can be separated and recycled.
Other parts – there are other things that go into your computer, like screws, springs, small plastic parts, etc. and they are generally made from the materials above, making them mostly recyclable. They typically make up only a small portion of the overall product.
Packaging – As part of recycling we receive a lot of corrugated cardboard, as well as other materials like plastic bags and creates. We try to reuse these items; we bale cardboard for reuse but some of the materials can’t be reused at present and are sent for heat recovery through incineration.
In support of Recycle IT – please recycle old, unused electronics. It helps the environment with reuse, reduces the mining of new raw materials and creates training and employment for people returning to work after an absence.
About Recycle IT
Recycle IT, is a social enterprise offering electrical, electronic and metal recycling services through drop-off and collection. Services are provided in partnership with WEEE Ireland and South Dublin County Council. Recycle IT is supported by Pobal and Dormant Accounts and authorized by the National Waste Collection Permit Office and the local authorities across Leinster.
Minister for Community Development, Integration and Charities, Joe O’Brien TD, made a visit to Recycle IT on Monday, March 6th, 2023. Board members and the staff team were on hand to greet the minister and share details on the work of Recycle IT a social enterprise striving to create training and employment opportunities through the recycling of old, damaged, or unused electrical and electronic equipment collected from homes and organisations.
Minister Joe O’Brien on arrival at Recycle IT
Announcement
During the visit to Recycle IT, Minister Joe O’Brien made time for an important announcement, the Minister said:
“I am delighted to launch a new Call for Applications under the Community Services Programme (CSP). The purpose of this funding is to support social enterprises and community/voluntary organisations with an additional strand focusing on circular economy projects that are either Traveller led or ones that will primarily employ members of the Traveller community.”
Funding of €1 million will be available for this new call in 2023 which will provide new organisations with an opportunity to access support to employ additional staff in line with the programme’s re-defined sub-programmes and new vision, which were approved in 2022.
Minister Joe O’Brien and Recycle IT Voluntary Board of Directors
Pre-application support workshops will be rolled out to ensure organisations are fully equipped with the information that they need to apply for this funding. As a first step, an Information Event will be held for organisations interested in applying for the programme on the week beginning 20 March 2023. Details will be shared on the Pobal CSP webpage and on the Department of Rural and Community Development social media channels. Organisations that wish to be notified about the workshops can also contact csp@pobal.ie
Following the pre-application support, organisations will be invited to submit a short concept note to Pobal outlining their proposal for assessment against the objectives of the call and organisations will then be informed whether their proposal fits with the call.
The Minister continued:
“The CSP supports a range of services, facilities and activities that enhance the quality of life for specific disadvantaged groups within our communities. This open call will be essential in broadening the range of services available and bringing new organisations onto the programme. I am delighted to say that we will also have a range of support workshops to assist those organisations in applying to the CSP Programme.”
Minister Joe O’Brien
About CSP
The Community Services Programme (CSP) supports over 420 community-based organisations including Recycle IT to provide local services through a social enterprise model. This model helps create training and employment opportunities for specific disadvantaged groups and individuals, such as people with disabilities, Travellers, recovering drug misusers, ex-prisoners, and long-term unemployed.
About Recycle IT
Recycle IT is an award-winning social enterprise providing community, personal and business recycling services for all types of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) in Dublin and surrounding counties.
During 2022 Recycle IT offered drop off and collection services to thousands of homes, schools, charities and businesses across Dublin and surrounding areas collecting a range of WEEE which included thousands of computers, cables, monitors, microwaves, TVs, and computer screens.
Recycling services offered by Recycle IT are provided in partnership with WEEE Ireland. Recycle IT is supported by the Pobal-managed, Community Services Programme, Dormant Accounts and by South Dublin County Council. Recycling services are authorized by the National Waste Collection Permit Office and the local authorities across Leinster.
For more information about Recycle IT please visit www.recycleit.ie or call 01 4578321.
The Recycler IT Team – Farewell to Minister Joe O’Brien
Recycle IT 