The Eastern Civic Amenity Site Joint Committee announced new charges for waste electrical items on January 10, 2025. This followed a notification from the Department of Infrastructure (DOI) on December 23, 2024, regarding the appointment of a new contractor for “the collection, storage, and export for recycling of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) and household batteries”.
These new charges resulted from changes in the UK Government's regulations on the cross-border transportation of waste electrical items. Previously, the regulations applied to fridges, freezers, TVs, and PC monitors. However, from 1st January 2025, the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations (2013) have been extended to cover all electrical items that were previously shipped as scrap metal. This means local scrap merchants can no longer include WEEE items within their scrap metal unless all electrical and electronic components have been removed.
In the UK, consumers pay a disposal cost within the purchase price because the WEEE Regulations require producers and distributors of electrical and electronic equipment to finance the collection, treatment, recycling, and environmentally sound disposal of WEEE. This does not apply in the Isle of Man and only affects the Island when shipping waste into the UK.
The Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture (DEFA) has chosen to introduce a charging mechanism via the DOI’s Waste Management unit. The DOI is responsible for ensuring that all Civic Amenity sites across the island have a viable disposal route. Although the DOI’s appointment was announced to all sites remarkably close to the Christmas period, limiting the Civic Amenity sites' ability to consider alternative arrangements, the most cost-effective way to comply with these new UK regulations was to arrange an all-island contractor. While the Eastern Civic Joint Committee acknowledges that the Island is powerless to resist the charges and the additional financial burden imposed on ratepayers, they are asking the public to continue disposing of these items responsibly at registered sites and not to fly-tip, where the cost is ultimately borne by the respective ratepayers.
To this end, every effort is being made to minimise the cost to consumers and the ratepayer. The Eastern Civic Amenity Site Contractor is dismantling larger WEEE items such as washing machines, cookers, and tumble dryers. This is because the DOI has arranged a tonnage charge with the contractor. Therefore, the operators at the Eastern Civic Amenity Site can ensure that the charge only covers the cost of disposing of the electrical components such as printed circuit boards, switches, sensors, and motors. The remaining metal carcasses can then be placed in the scrap metal reducing the disposal cost for ratepayers by eliminating the additional weight of the metal carcasses.
The Committee would urge householders not to attempt dismantling the items themselves, both from a personal safety perspective, but also as the site cannot accept part dismantled equipment, because of the risk of electrical/electronic components contaminating a particular waste stream, which is the principle purpose behind the Regulations, whereas the Eastern Civic Amenity Site Contractor has the authority to dismantle these items under its Waste licence.
While this is not an ideal situation for the public or the Eastern Civic Amenity Site team, the team is doing everything they can to minimise the cost for the ratepayer. The Contractor and Head of Waste Services is appealing to the public to show more understanding and “to treat the staff who are doing their jobs with respect and urge anyone with concerns to contact DEFA or the DOI directly.”
Information about the new charges can be found by visiting Douglas City Council’s Website https://www.douglas.gov.im/index.php/services/civic-amenity or follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/DouglasCityCouncil
