Pursuant to the provisions of the Act of 11 September 2015 on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment, it is prohibited to dispose of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) with the crossed-out wheeled bin symbol together with any other waste.

Users intending to dispose of such products are required to return waste electrical and electronic equipment to designated WEEE collection points. These collection points are operated, among others, by wholesalers and retailers of electrical and electronic equipment, as well as by municipal organisational units responsible for waste collection.

These statutory obligations were introduced to reduce the amount of waste generated from electrical and electronic equipment and to ensure an appropriate level of WEEE collection, recovery, and recycling. Proper compliance with these requirements is particularly important where waste equipment contains hazardous components that may have a significant adverse impact on the environment and human health.

The role of households in contributing to the re-use and recovery, including recycling, of waste electrical and electronic equipment.

Article 13(2)

Households play a key role in contributing to the re-use and recovery, including recycling, of waste electrical and electronic equipment.

Pursuant to Article 35 of the aforementioned Act, users of household electrical and electronic equipment are required to dispose of waste equipment exclusively at designated collection points. In particular, such equipment may be returned only to the following locations: 

• Local WEEE collection points. Information on the addresses of these points is available, for example, on the websites of the relevant municipalities.
• Directly to WEEE treatment facilities.
• Retail or wholesale outlets selling similar equipment. Sellers are obliged to accept waste equipment on a one-for-one basis (i.e. when purchasing new equipment, the old equipment of the same type may be returned).
• Retail outlets with a sales area exceeding 400 m² – small equipment with external dimensions not exceeding 25 cm may be returned free of charge and without the obligation to purchase new equipment.

If the equipment contains batteries, these must be removed and disposed of separately in designated battery collection containers. Such containers should be available at every retail or wholesale outlet with a sales area of at least 25 m² that sells batteries or equipment containing batteries.

By disposing of waste equipment correctly, each of us contributes to the re-use of valuable raw materials and supports the effective functioning of electrical and electronic waste management system, which has an impact on the environment and public health. Proper disposal helps conserve natural resources and prevents negative impacts on human health and the environment that may result from improper handling of waste and hazardous substances.