Vehicle ownership has gone up massively over recent decades in SIDS, but this also means more and more vehicles are reaching the end of their lives on islands which have limited capacity to dispose of them or dismantle and recycle them effectively. The ISLANDS Programme is supporting SIDS to develop effective recycling regimes with regards end-of-life vehicles as part of its Programme to help reduce the burden of toxic chemicals and hazardous waste in SIDS.

But this work to recover value through recycling should not begin just at the end of the life of a vehicle, it should be written into the design of the vehicles in the first place. This article by Robin Latchem, published on recyclinginternational.com, looks at research that shows that end-of-life processing can start at the beginning of life!