In the context of the LIFE WEEE project, 956 surveys all over Andalusia have been carried out in order to find out to which extent do Andalusians recycle and if they are aware of the existence of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE).
The surveys have shown that WEEE are not a familiar topic to most Andalusians, mainly due to the little information provided by both authorities and distributors. Andalusians are not familiar neither with the meaning of the acronym WEEE and the relevant legislation nor with the existence of collection points.
However, there is a general desire to change these perceptions, as Andalusians receive quite positively the ideas of creating websites or smartphone apps containing information on recycling and collection points. Looking at the facts, Almería is the Andalusian province in which people are the most aware (2.95/5) of the importance of recycling and disposing of WEEE in a responsible manner. On the other hand, the lowest awareness rates were registered in the province of Cádiz (1.82/5). By ages, people between 45 and 55 years old are the most sensitive on the importance of recycling (2.79/5). However, people under 25 years old surprisingly come second (2.72/5), so that there are reasons to hope that things will change positively in the future.
At present, WEEE collection rates in Andalusia (4.3 kg/year) are still far from meeting the objectives set by the EU (12 kg/year) and lag behind of the rates registered in other regions such as Tuscany (5.6 kg/year). However, results show that Andalusians are willing to collaborate and contribute to change things, and that positive attitude, alongside with the cooperation and exchange of good practices with other European regions, will doubtlessly have a significant impact on WEEE recycling in the future.