A community group on Deeside dedicated to recycling and reuse is offering a new, free service collecting unwanted technology from homes and businesses in the area.
Recycle (Deeside Services) has been working in the local community for ten years, collecting, sorting and recycling plastic bottles.
More recently it has opened a small shop called Kraftwork in Aboyne, where refurbished furniture and repurposed and recycled wooden pallets are sold.
They also sell kindling, decorate horseshoes for weddings and other special occasions and produce handmade soaps.
It is a project run by Aberdeenshire Council’s social work department for people who may require training and support to access employment.
Funding was recently secured to run the collection service for unwanted IT equipment for a trial period.
Currently items that are complete, in working order and in reasonably good condition, having been purchased within the last few years, can be accepted.
These include: PCs, laptops, flat screen TVs and monitors, smartphones, tablets and printer ink cartridges.
The service will run for six months before being assessed, so householders and businesses are encouraged to make the most of the opportunity.
Recycle (Deeside Services) is working with environmental organisations Re-Tek, an IT and technology reuse company who have operated in the business sector for over twenty years, and local company Enscape to run the pilot.
Enscape is providing management and logistics expertise to assist both Recycle and Re-Tek to implement the new service.
Recycle will collect the unwanted items, store, clean and package them for Re-Tek to collect, securely wipe and refurbish the items for resale and reuse.
Reuse is generally preferred to recycling: this project should give a better outcome than breaking down and recycling technology, using less energy.
Collection requests and appointments will be accepted from Wednesday, July 1, with collections starting on Monday, July 13.
Chairman of Aberdeenshire Council’s Infrastructure Services Committee, David Aitchison, said: “This group already makes a valuable contribution to our local environment and this is a great opportunity for people living on Deeside to get involved, disposing of unwanted technology and assisting a local community group at the same time.
“It is great to see them branching out, developing new business models and means of generating income while offering the chance of work experience to local people who may benefit from the opportunity.”
Founding director of Re-Tek Ltd, Kevin Culligan, said: “We hope this service will be well used by locals and not only result in a more environmentally friendly way of managing the disposal of electronic equipment, but provide Recycle with a new business and training model, as well as an additional source of income.
“We are happy to work with Recycle to make this service work to the benefit of all the parties involved, including, most importantly, the local community.”
Director of Enscape consulting, Brian Menzes, said: “Enscape Consulting is pleased to be working with Aberdeenshire Council, Recycle and Re-Tek UK, to implement this service.
“The project is an exciting one to be involved with, and the hope is it will provide important community and commercial benefits for all involved.”
The project has received support funding through the Distributor Takeback Scheme (DTS) and the UK Department for Business Innovation and Skills.
For more information, or to arrange a collection, call (01339) 887114 or e-mail: recycledeeside@aberdeenshire.gov.uk
For details of the technology accepted and how devices are securely wiped of any existing data, as well as how they are used, click here.