Fewer old TVs in Cambridge now
3 February 2014
Cambridge residents have taken full advantage of a free campaign to recycle their old television sets with more than 1100 already returned to the recycling centre.
The campaign, which began in October last year, coincided with the switch from analogue to digital television and an expected increase in old, unwanted TVs. The Government recognised this as a potential waste problem and committed money to encourage New Zealanders to responsibly recycle their televisions.
The cost of recycling one television set is $25 and the government subsidy was $20. Waipa District Council funded the extra five dollars though its Waste Minimisation Levy to make it completely free for people in the district.
Council's manager, road corridor Dawn Inglis said the TV Take-Back scheme had been a real success especially in Cambridge where the recycling centre had seen a steady flow of sets returned, many still in good working order.
Some of these sets must have been sitting in people's homes for 30 or 40 years. There are some wonderful examples of good old fashioned box TVs which in some cases take two people to lift. There is certainly a spectrum of eras in the collection, she said.
Waipa has now spent its allocation of money to take the TVs back but for a $5 fee people can to return old sets until the end of March.
TVs contain materials like lead that are potential hazardous to human health. They also contain:
- Metals such as steel which can be melted down and used in new items for the construction or agricultural industries
- Precious metals such as gold which can be recovered in specialist facilities overseas for use in new electronic items. and
- Glass which can be remanufactured overseas into new televisions or monitors or used for sand blasting or industrial processes.
Nationally, almost 105,000 televisions have been collected for recycling.
Ends
For more information please contact
Dawn Inglis
(07) 8720083
027 554 2221
