Offaly Co. Council in conjunction with WEE Ireland bring you a series of Free WEEE Electrical Recycling Days across Co. Offaly during the month of May .
Offaly householders are being urged to bring their batteries, electrical, and electronic waste to a set of free collection days to help the county meet national e-waste recycling targets for 2025.
The events, hosted by WEEE Ireland in partnership with Offaly County Council, take place on:
Tuesday May 6th from 10am-4pm at the Clodiagh Gaels GAA Club in Killeigh, Tullamore R35 HE27.
Thursday, May 8th from 10am-4pm in Shannonbridge GAA Club on Rackragh Park, Lecarrow N37 VA46.
Tuesday May 13th from 10am-4pm at the Ferbane GAA Club in Ballycumber Road, Ferbane R42 VW29.
Thursday, May 15th from 10am-4pm in Kilcormac Killoughey GAA Club, Kilcormac R42 KX52.
Anything with a plug, battery or cable can be recycled for free on the day, including old washing machines, TVs, toasters and kettles, electronic tools and toys, cables, IT equipment, mobile phones, remote controls, batteries, including farm fence batteries, and even watches.
“In Offaly, and across Ireland, we are buying more electrical goods than ever – with people purchasing an average 23kg per head in 2024, compared to the pre-Covid average of 16kgs in 2019,” said WEEE Ireland CEO Leo Donovan.
“Shopping stats show a surge in spend on new electrical devices like mobile phones, computers, small kitchen appliances and white goods. With old items still lying around many households we want to offer the opportunity to recycle these for free.”
“People in Offaly have contributed greatly to e-waste recycling every year, with 657 tonnes of electrical waste collected in the county in 2023, and we want to encourage that trend” said WEEE Ireland CEO Leo Donovan.
7.9kg of e-waste was recycled per person in Offaly in 2023 – falling short of the national average of 10.33kg per person that same year. WEEE Ireland warns that the nation needs to meet new forthcoming EU targets to recycle at least 25% of our annual consumption of critical raw materials from e-waste.
“Recycling e-waste is incredibly beneficial for both the environment and the economy,” said Mr. Donovan.
“Together, we are diverting waste from landfill, recovering raw materials for reuse and ensuring hazardous materials are safely and responsibly disposed of. We look forward to working with Offaly householders to hopefully recycle a record-breaking amount of electronic waste in 2025.”
“An average of 80% of all e-waste that we collect is recovered for use again in manufacturing through both indigenous operators and specialist processors in Europe,” said Mr. Donovan.
“Most end-of-life products contain metals and minerals in higher concentrations than primary resources.”