WEEE Follow was an internal project of Electrão, which started in 2020. One of the biggest problems in the electrical waste recycling sector is the parallel market that diverts this equipment from the formal circuit, before it is collected by certified and competent entities and then correctly forwarded for recycling. This diversion involves the improper dismantling of equipment which results in air, land and water pollution and impacts the country’s recycling targets.

To better understand how the parallel market works and thus be able to stop it, we launched WEEE Follow, an investigation in which we installed GPS tags on electrical waste placed in various collection points and followed their trajectory.