Haringey in London is among the top five e-waste fly tipping hotspots in England for the second year running, with 9,593 reported incidents in the past five years, new research has shown.

Global technology company OKdo revisited their previous study on the areas of the country that have seen the highest number of fly tipping incidents involving electrical items in the last few years, which analysed historical Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs data from 2014/15 to 2019/20, and named Liverpool the e-waste capital of England. 

The new analysis, which factored in new 2020/21 DEFRA figures covering reported incidents across 313 locations in England, shows Liverpool still tops the list of the most affected places with 11,328 e-waste fly tipping incidents in the past five years, followed closely by Manchester (10,756) and Haringey, London (9,593). 

Top five areas with the highest number of reported e-waste fly tipping incidents in the past five years:  

1. Liverpool (11,328) 

2. Manchester (10,756) 

3. Haringey, London (9,593) 

4. Bradford, West Yorkshire (8,876) 

5. Leeds (8,115) 

According to a survey by OKdo, a third (33%) of UK residents don’t know how to recycle their old technology items correctly and have never done so before.   
 

The data suggests there is a correlation between the number of people who are in the dark about ways to recycle their old tech items, and the areas where e-waste fly tipping is most prevalent, highlighting the need for further education on how old technology can be disposed of.   
 

Two in five (40%) of those in Liverpool - the current e-waste fly tipping capital - said they are not aware of the correct ways to dispose of old tech safely, as well as three in ten (33%) Mancunians. Manchester took second place in the e-waste fly tipping hotspots list. 
 

When looking at year-on-year comparisons, the analysis by OKdo has shown Reigate and Banstead, Surrey saw the biggest increase in e-waste fly tipping incidents since 2019/20 (+1490%), followed closely by Solihull, West Midlands (+819%) and South Holland, Lincolnshire (+354%). 

Areas that have seen the biggest increase in the number of reported e-waste fly tipping incidents year-on-year: 

1. Reigate and Banstead, Surrey (+1,490%) 

2. Solihull, West Midlands (+819%) 

3. South Holland, Lincolnshire (+354%) 

4. Barnet, London (+276%) 

5. Haringey, London (+238%) 

6. Vale of White Horse, Oxfordshire (+237%) 

7. Cheltenham, Gloucestershire (+236%) 

8. High Peak, Derbyshire (+235%) 

9. Kingston upon Hull, East Yorkshire (+232%) 

10. Huntingdonshire (+220%) 

Some areas have seen instances of illegal e-waste dumping decrease year-on-year though. Enfield in London, which was identified as one of the areas with the highest number of reported fly-tipping incidents in the previous study, saw the biggest decrease (-51%), followed by East Devon (-32%) and Doncaster in South Yorkshire (-26%). 

According to national fly tipping statistics by DEFRA, local authorities in England saw a +16% increase in reported fly-tipping incidents in the last year, with the number of reported occurrences in 2020/21 rising to 1.13 million versus 980,000 in 2019/20. 

As in the previous year, just under two thirds (65%) of fly-tips involved household waste. The number of fixed penalty notices issued was 57,600 in 2020/21, with the total value of fines issued reaching £440,000.  

Okdo’s top tips for what to do with old tech 

There are many ways to dispose of electronics without having to contribute to landfill. You can donate to one of several charities and tech initiatives, use a professional recycling service to ensure your old devices are properly and safely disposed of, or even trade-in items to get cash or vouchers. 

1. Mazuma is one of many online businesses that will buy your old smartphones, tablets, games consoles, watches, and laptops from you. You can either get cash, or an e-voucher (worth 10% extra). When taking into consideration the average number of each tech items that UK households have, and the typical top and bottom trade-in values of these, experts at Mazuma estimate that Brits could get anywhere from £100 to £7,750 for their old tech!  

2. Some local authorities collect small electrical items as part of their curbside collection services, but you can also recycle these and larger appliances at Household Waste Recycling Centres. You can find a list of these near you here. 

3. The British Heart Foundation also offers a free, Covid-secure collection service for working electronics. These may then be sold in their stores or online, meaning your unused and unneeded tech is contributing to good causes. 

4. WeeeCharity is a non-profit charity registered in the UK that helps to relieve poverty by offering free recycling of computers and electrical equipment, no matter what condition it’s in. These electronics are then recycled, donated, or resold back to the community. 

5. You can now send any pre-loved Raspberry Pi board to OKdo free of charge, via the OKdo Renew scheme, and in return you will receive a £10 voucher. For each board that is sent it, a donation will be made to the Raspberry Pi Foundation which works to put the power of computing into the hands of young people all over the world and encourages to express themselves creatively. 

Richard Curtin, SVP of Technology at OKdo commented on the findings: ”Our research has shown there’s still much to be done about raising awareness of the environmental impact of e-waste across the nation as well as how people can dispose of their old tech in an environmentally friendly way. As a business, and as part of the wider Electrocomponents group, we are committed to making responsible choices whilst supporting rapid technological development. It’s our priority to make sure our customers can trust us to be conscious about our environmental impact and know that we’re taking tangible steps to reduce it.    
  

“The data suggests there is a correlation between the areas with the highest number of e-waste fly tipping incidents, and the number of people who are in the dark about ways to recycle their old technology safely and responsibly. This highlights the need for further education on this nationwide, to help the public fully understand the impact electronic waste can have on the environment, if not disposed of correctly, and be more aware of their options.  
  

“Here at OKdo, we are taking steps to promote electronic waste recycling and reduce our environmental impact. One of our initiatives is our Raspberry Pi recycling scheme, OKdo Renew, in partnership with Raspberry PI and the Sony Technology centre. By offering this service, which provides a £10 voucher for every recycled working Raspberry Pi board, we’re hoping to encourage the public to think of ways technology can impact the environment and give them incentives to recycle and give their old tech a new life.  
  
For each one we renew, we will also be making a donation to the Raspberry Pi Foundation, that works to put the power of computing into the hands of young people all over the world and encourages to express themselves creatively.”