Essentially consumers are dumping far too much waste into the ground. This not only takes up space, but poisons the earth. The explosion of new electrical equipment, such as mobile phones (consumers change them too frequently), computers, TVs, radios, mp3 players, CD, DVD, sat-nav etc means that the amount of WEEE (waste electrical and electronic equipment) being discarded has serious implications for us all. We are running out of landfill sites, for example, and raw materials are being consumed at an alarming rate.

The UK government is charged by the European Parliament to reduce landfill and promote recycling. It will be fined by Brussells if it fails to meet targets. It charges local authorities with the task of collecting and recycling and fines them if they fail to achieve targets set by central government. This is why local councils are now so keen to recycle your rubbish and punish householders for not doing their job for them!

EEE (electrical and electronic equipment) is capable of being recycled and/or broken down into constituent parts if not discarded into the normal waste stream. Consumers and users must separate out EEE and not dump it in normal waste. It must be taken to an appropriate disposal facility. Contact your local council or check their website under 'environment' for details of your nearest approved facility.

Hopefully this provides enough information to enable consumers and end users to 'think before dumping'