Why consumer campaigns pay off for companies

Missed collection and recovery targets put added pressure on producers: the public need to play their part

Reciclar no Sentido Certo – or recycle in the right direction in Portuguese – is a national campaign that highlights the importance of recycling waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE).

The campaign ran until October on television, radio, and online channels. It was organized by the WEEE producer compliance schemes, Electrão, ERP Portugal and E-Cycle, together with the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) and the General Directorate of Economic Activities (DGAE).

The campaign explained to citizens where to take electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) that can no longer be repaired and has reached the end of its life – and emphasized how important their behaviour is to the recycling process.

A lot of EEE is still thrown away and ends up in landfill. Or it is left to pollute soils and watercourses where the harmful substances contaminate the food chain.

That’s why the campaign aims to:

• Prevent WEEE being thrown away
• Increase recycling rates
• Ensure the treatment and decontamination of harmful substances, and
• Recover materials for reuse

According to Inês Santos Costa, Secretary of State for the Environment, “WEEE has challenges (hazardous components), opportunities (precious metals) and ambitious collection and recovery targets, which countries like Portugal find it difficult to meet. It is within the scope of the WEEE Action Plan that this campaign is included. We want to explain where we can make a difference: for our health, our family and the place where we live.”

For João Veloso da Silva Torres, Secretary of State for Commerce, Services and Consumer Protection, “It is important to manage this waste efficiently for environmental reasons. But it is also very important for the economy, as it gives us the possibility to keep materials in the economic cycle for as long as possible, and create companies, income and employment through treatment and recycling activities.”

Visit the campaign website here.

FACT BOX:
Landbell Group companies, ERP Portugal and Novo Verde provide WEEE, batteries and packaging compliance for producers in Portugal.