A lot of WEEE waste gets thrown away with rubbish and sent to landfill. Councils spend around £60,000 each year in costs for collection of rubbish. All WEEE items are suitable for re-use, repair or recycling if it is kept separate from other rubbish. WEEE waste collection London is one the fastest growing waste streams in the EU, the WEEE Directive has set collection, recycling and recovery targets for all types of electrical goods across Europe.

WEEE is classed as “hazardous waste” so it is an offence to mix it with other wastes except in a domestic context. EU legislation restricting the use of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment (RoHS Directive 2002/95/EC) entered into force in February 2003. The legislation requires heavy metals such as lead, mercury, cadmium, and hexavalent chromium and flame retardants such as polybrominated biphenyls or polybrominated diphenyl ethers to be substituted by safer alternatives.

There are a few ways of disposing low-energy light bulbs:

Low-energy light bulbs contain small amounts of mercury. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) advises to vacate a room for at least 15 minutes if these bulbs are broken.
Waste bulbs produced at home can be dispose of along with your other rubbish provided they are wrapped to avoid risk of injury to collectors. However, bulbs mixed with general refuse cannot be recycled.
To recycle them, put the bulb in a sealed plastic bag and take it to the Household Waste and Recycling Centre in your local area
Unbroken used bulbs can be taken back to some retailers

All electrical items covered by the WEEE regulations, by law will display a crossed-out wheelie bin symbol. This means that non-domestic waste producers must keep these items separate from other waste.