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Australian Government Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs

Disabilities

Business Services Scoping Study of Recycling of Redundant Computer Equipment

October 2006

It is estimated that Australian households and businesses are currently storing millions of redundant computers, and it is likely that computer redundancy will continue at a rapid pace due to the increasing technical capacity and reduction in cost of new computers.

The traditional method of disposing of computers has been via local council landfills, but various tiers of government are placing increasing pressure on the computer industry to come up with an industry recycling scheme. If the industry is unable to establish a voluntary code, it is likely that a compulsory scheme will be imposed.

To date, the Victorian State Government has lead the way through 'Sustainability Victoria' which has established the 'Byteback' computer recycling program that currently operates one site in Melbourne. It is expected that 'Sustainability Victoria' will soon be calling for tenders to operate additional recycling sites.

To assist in understanding the economics of computing recycling and the potential for Business Services to participate in the industry, FaCSIA engaged Waywick Management Services to prepare an E-Recycling Scoping Report.

The Report notes that some Business Services are already recycling computers and that this activity is commercially viable and provides meaningful work opportunities. Further, the potential for the expansion of the e-recycling industry is huge.