Irish consumers recycled in record numbers in 2025, figures show

Irish consumers recycled 21.1 million units of electronic and electrical waste in 2025, up from 18.8 million in 2024, according to new data.

​Despite these new record figures, Waste Electrical & Electronic Equipment Ireland (WEEE), has warned that the European measurement systems do not capture the full picture.

​WEEE’s annual report showed that nearly 39,000 tonnes of e-waste were collected nationwide in 2025, measured at 7,425 truckloads.

​Broken down, the e-waste included 18.5 million small appliances, 1.9 million lighting products, 278,222 TV’s and monitors, and 123, 060 fridge-freezers.

​There were also 1,284 tonnes of portable waste batteries collected, hitting the EU’s target of 45 per cent battery collection target.

​Leo Donovan, WEEE Ireland CEO, said that Ireland is falling short of Europe’s 65% collection target, while measuring e-waste collection against the volume of new electrical goods placed onto the market.

He said: “Ireland is recycling more electrical waste than ever before, and consumers are making a real effort to do the right thing. But Europe’s current measurement system was designed for a very different market,” said Mr Donovan.

​“Current collection rate targets do not adequately reflect modern consumption patterns, long product lifespans, or emerging technologies such as solar PV systems and heat pumps.

​“These products may not enter the recycling stream for decades, yet they are already included in today’s sales-based targets.

​“With the re-evaluation of the WEEE Directive in progress, WEEE Ireland supports a more modern approach to measuring the effectiveness of national recycling systems.”

​Mr Donovan added: “Europe is moving towards a model where circular economy performance will matter just as much as collection volumes,” he said.

​“The focus now has to move beyond simply collecting waste to ensuring valuable materials, including lithium, copper, cobalt and aluminium, are recovered to strict standards and kept within the circular economy.”

​“Ireland is well positioned to respond to those changes due to sustained investment in our recycling infrastructure, compliance systems and public awareness campaigns over the past two decades.”