In Switzerland last year, the average person disposed of 10.23 kilograms of electrical or electronic appliances in the SENS system. The total amount of collected appliances amounts to a total weight of 89,960 tonnes (incl. lighting equipment, photovoltaics as well as industrial and vehicle batteries). You can find impressive values, useful figures and information on important changes here.
SENS eRecycling
Success through a dense network of reliable partners
Our partners represent the basis for the success of our take-back system. It is only through credible partnerships that the ambitious goals of SENS eRecycling can be achieved and the circular economy in Switzerland can be enabled and strengthened.
Key Figures for the Take-back System
Disposal partners
Top performance for a sustainable Switzerland
As an expert in the sustainable recycling of discarded electrical and electronic appliances in and around the home, lighting equipment and lamps, photovoltaic systems, and vehicle and industrial batteries, SENS eRecycling plays a crucial role in setting pioneering standards in eRecycling. We owe this success in part to our disposal partners.
Recycling
¹8 667 100 inhabitants in 2020, 8 736 500 inhabitants in 2021 according to FSO.
* The collection rate indicates the relation between the collected quantity of disused waste electrical and electronic appliances and the quantity of new appliances put into circulation. The rate is determined annually and used as an indicator of a take-back system’s performance. Switzerland has one of the highest collection rates in Europe. As a permit from the Federal Office for the Environment is required to export defective electrical and electronic appliances, this only occurs on rare occasions. Furthermore, only small quantities are improperly discarded, e.g. with general waste. Thanks to the dense network of collection points, the broad coverage of processing facilities and the financing of the recycling process by the advance recycling fee (ARF), almost all waste electrical and electronic appliances are properly processed using the take-back system (SENS, Swico). Inaccuracies currently still exist with regard to the mix of goods and the factors used when converting from items to kilograms in the case of new appliances. Furthermore, the storage of unused appliances by their owners or their passing on for further use are not considered in the collection rate.
ARC partners
Voluntary participation leads to success
The SENS eRecycling system is based on the principle of voluntary participation. It relies on sovereign entrepreneurial decisions – and not on state regulations. The principle of voluntary participation, the preservation of entrepreneurial autonomy and the absence of political constraints make it possible to implement appropriate solutions with great efficiency, and without losing sight of sector-specific goals.
eRecycling is sustainably secured thanks to our ARC partners. Everyone benefits – the affiliated companies as well as the population.
Advance recycling contribution (ARC)
Advance financing provides security in the recycling system
The SENS take-back system is financed through the advance recycling contribution (ARC). The contribution is levied by the manufacturer/importer and covers the entire collection, logistics and recycling costs in the eRecycling cycle.
Through the privately organised financing of a Switzerland-wide take-back network via the ARC, manufacturers, importers and retailers can fulfil the legal obligation to take back appliances defined by the ORDEE in a simple and customer-friendly manner.
The advance contribution also offers consumers the greatest possible convenience. As disposal costs are included in the purchase price from the outset, no further costs are incurred when the appliances are returned to collection points and retail stores – an essential basic requirement for a successful recycling system!