Hundreds of millions of pounds worth of copper found inside unused or binned electricals could help supply the growing demand for the metal, according to new research.
A study by Material Focus’ Recycle Your Electricals campaign found that UK households currently contain 1.3 billion unused or binned electricals, including more than 627 million cables, which combined are estimated to contain more than 38,000 tonnes of copper, worth around £266 million.
The research highlights analysis from Bloomberg Intelligence which says this copper could be vital to help meet growing global demand for the material if it is better recycled.
Meanwhile, the Royal Society of Chemistry has found that 347,000 tonnes of copper is needed to build wind turbines and solar panels by 2030.
As a result, Recycle Your Electricals is launching The Great Cable Challenge to mark International E-Waste Day, and is encouraging people to recycle one million cables to help reduce e-waste while also potentially helping with the development of greener technologies.
The campaign estimates that the 627 million old cables alone could stretch to the moon and back, and contain more than 3,200 tonnes of copper.
Scott Butler, executive director of Recycle Your Electricals said: “Our research has revealed that these old electricals that we’re sitting on, almost 40,000 tonnes of it, is either being thrown away or just sitting idle in our drawers, and that in itself could feed the copper demands of the tech and appliance sector, but also contribute massively to help with this increasing copper crunch that we’re seeing.”
He added that the many different cables many households had in their so-called “drawer of doom” at home were essentially an “urban mine” that was “currently sitting idle or going to waste”.
“We wanted to highlight that leaning into that drawer of doom and saying that one small thing that we do cumulatively can actually have a big effect, and make a big contribution to that greener economy that we’re aiming for, and also help stop digging massive, damaging, socially challenging, water-hungry, massive holes in the ground.”
Izzi Monk, policy adviser of the environment at the Royal Society of Chemistry, said: “The UK needs to wake up to just how important copper is in achieving our greener future – our analysis suggests we need a significant investment of around 350,000 tonnes for wind and solar power generation by 2030.
“We are potentially facing imminent and substantial supply concerns where we won’t be able to meet the global demand for this vital material.
“That’s why we’re calling for the government to commit to a strategic, joined-up approach to materials that considers these supply risks.
“Upping secondary sourcing of copper through recycling is a really important route towards greater supply security – the government needs to invest in technologies and infrastructure to make sure recycling can be grown without creating worse environmental, social and health impacts.
“As a nation, if we can crack the formula for recycling the copper we already have, we can make a real difference for the future of our planet.”