Successful year for vape recycling scheme

Funded by Material Focus, a not for profit organisation leading the Recycle Your Electricals campaign, the initiative has played a vital role in promoting sustainable recycling practices across Oxfordshire.

Cherwell District Council, in partnership with Oxfordshire County Council, Oxford City Council and its commercial partner ODS, provided residents in Cherwell with easy and convenient kerbside recycling collections for disposable vapes alongside in-person collection bins at various locations.

Disposable vapes often end up in litter bins or general waste, contaminating other recyclable materials and posing fire risks in collection vehicles and waste management facilities.

Thanks to this county-wide scheme residents have been able to access a number of collection options to responsibly recycle their vapes, including:

• New kerbside collection services for vapes for residents in Cherwell and Oxford.
• New public recycling collection points in locations in Oxford, Banbury, Bicester, and Kidlington, including local bars, university premises, and public buildings.
• Large pink bins placed at all seven household waste recycling centres in Oxfordshire.

As part of the project, more than 80,000 disposable vapes have been recycled so far, exceeding the target of two tonnes of vape waste.

Councillor Ian Middleton, Portfolio Holder for Neighbourhood Services at Cherwell District Council, said: “Single use vapes are notorious for the dangers they present if they are not disposed of in responsible manner. Not only are the batteries inside them a huge waste of resources if they are carelessly discarded, they can also cause serious fires if collected with general waste, which represents a safety risk to refuse collectors and the general public.

“We were pleased to be able to provide residents in the district with an easy and safe way to recycle these tricky mixed material products from their homes via kerbside collections and local recycling points and look forward to them finally being banned next year.”

Councillor Dr Pete Sudbury, Deputy Leader of Oxfordshire County Council with Responsibility for Climate change, Environment and Future Generations, said: “The best solution to this issue is for disposable vapes to be banned, which the government is doing and we welcome this. In the meantime, our joint efforts to get as many of these items as possible into the recycling system has been a great success, and we thank everyone who has taken part.

“I'm glad to see people will still be able to dispose of single use vapes sensibly, up to the time they are rightly banned.”

Councillor Nigel Chapman, Oxford City Council Cabinet Member for Citizen Focused Services and Council Companies, said: “Once collected, the vapes were meticulously sorted and dismantled manually, with components such as plastic, aluminium, and lithium carefully separated and sent to approved recyclers. This process not only promotes responsible disposal but also recovers valuable materials that can be reused.

“Looking ahead, the government has announced a ban on disposable vapes by June 2025, encouraging consumers to opt for reusable alternatives. This aligns with our ongoing commitment to promoting sustainable practices.”

While the funded period of the project has concluded, most of the services set up will continue. Residents can find drop off locations to recycle their vapes using the search tool on the Recycle Your Electricals website, and find details on kerbside collections using Oxfordshire’s Waste Wizard tool.

Scott Butler, Executive Director of Material Focus, said: “This vape recycling project has proven that small electrical recycling is important to residents. We are delighted with how engaged and supportive local communities have been and how the investment from the Electrical Recycling Fund has funded the local project.

“As e-waste is the fastest growing waste stream, we hope to continue to see a rise in the amount of electricals recycled across the UK.”

An estimated 8.2 million vapes (such as single use, pod and ‘big puff’) are now thrown away every week or recycled incorrectly – around 13 every second. More information about the big puff vapes, which are surging onto the market, and the threat they pose is available on Material Focus’ website.