Quantifing and Mapping Electrical Waste in France
This project was conducted for a consortium of French Producer Responsibility Organisations (PROs), namely Ecosystem, Ecologic and PV Cycle, who are managing take-back and recycling obligations on behalf of Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) producers in France. They represent more than 6000 EEE producers placing each year 1.2 billion units (2.1 million tonnes) on the French market.
The consortium sought help from dss+ on how to meet their obligations given our expertise in electronic waste. We helped develop a framework for action, multiple tools and an engagement strategy to support.
Challenge
French PROs, like their counterparts in most European countries, do not, as of yet, meet the mandatory collection targets defined by the EU WEEE Directive – which are defined as either 65% of the quantities placed on the market or 85% of the waste generated. The main aim of the project was to quantify the volumes and map the destinations of WEEE generated in France and elaborate a set of recommendations to increase collection rates.
dss+ Approach
dss+ took the following approach:
- Developed an innovative, comprehensive and scientifically-sound methodological framework to quantify the volumes and map the destinations of WEEE generated.
- Designed user-friendly, dynamic and updatable tools to quantify WEEE generated in the B2C and B2B sectors.
- Analysed complex datasets on product sales, product lifetimes, waste collection, etc.
- Piloted field and consumer surveys to obtain information on disposal behaviours and WEEE destinations.
- Led participative processes with more than 120 stakeholders to share progress and results of the study, gather feedback and intelligence and draw a wide range of recommendations.
Assignment
Quantify the volumes and map the destinations of WEEE in France. Develop a set of recommendations to increase collection rates.
Offering
Circular economy and eco design.
Impact
- Most detailed and exhaustive quantification of WEEE whereabouts to date – only 10% remains unaccounted for. Enabled identification of priority action areas.
- Produced a wealth of quantitative tools and datasets to accurately and continuously track volumes and destinations of WEEE generated.
- Identified 23 key actions to sustainably increase WEEE collection rates. The importance, timing and key stakeholders were assessed for each action.
- Promotion and dissemination of findings through 5 separate reports, totalling over 500 pages, supporting the French advocacy effort at European level.