It is a first for a waste recycling company in South Africa. The British company Sims Recycling Solutions (SRS), one of the world leaders in the recycling of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), has just received the "Responsible Recycling" certificate (R2).
About forty kilometres from Durban, on the east coast of South Africa, is the seaside town of Ballito. Sims Recycling Solutions (SRS) has installed its electronic waste recycling unit in this KwaZulu-Natal town. The waste, which is recycled there, comes from all over the country. The British company has just received the “Responsible Recycling” certificate, still called R2, for its entire professional commitment throughout the country, and particularly for its Bollito recycling plant. The certificate is awarded to companies that comply with environmental standards during their waste recovery operations.
One of the difficulties of recycling electronic waste concerns the production of carbon dioxide which degrades the ozone layer, hence the introduction of a number of precautions to limit these impacts. This is what SRS does on a daily basis at the Ballito recycling site.
SRS, pioneer in Africa on responsible recycling
R2 certification is accredited by a certification body. “Achieving R2 certification at our Ballito e-waste recycling facility sets the bar higher for our e-waste processing business in South Africa and demonstrates our commitment to properly recycling end-of-life electronic devices in the South African market,” said Marc Affüpper, Director of SRS South Africa.
The certificate that the South African subsidiary of SRS has just received was awarded by Seri, an environmental standards development organisation. To do so, it based itself on criteria such as the protection of the health and safety of workers and the public, as well as respect for the environment. “The SRS Ballito plant, with its R2 certification, is the leader on the African continent for the responsible recycling of electronic waste. This is wonderful news,” said John Lingelbach, Executive Director of Seri. Today, SRS is present in 5 continents with 50 electronic waste recycling sites in 21 countries around the world.
Jean Marie Takouleu