Thousands of tonnes of CO₂ emissions could be avoided if the UK meets its recycling targets. In the UK, around 40,000 tonnes of portable batteries were sold in 2018, with only around 18,000 tonnes being recycled.

Most batteries are put into rubbish bins and then taken to landfill sites. There are different types of batteries which can contain dangerous chemicals including: lead, cadmium, zinc, lithium and even mercury.

When batteries begin to rot away in landfill sites these chemicals may leak into the ground, which can cause soil and water pollution. When chemicals contaminate soil and water animals, humans and the environment can be harmed.

Recycling is a great way to help protect the environment. Each battery placed in a recycling bin will be taken apart and the materials will be used to make something new.

How are batteries recycled?

Used batteries can be sent for recycling by placing them into collection containers that can be found at many retail outlets and other public buildings across the UK.

Compliance schemes, like Valpak which works in partnership with Ecobat Logistics collect these boxes and take the batteries away to be recycled.

Sorting batteries before recycling helps the recycling process. This is because batteries are made from many different chemistries such as lithium-ion (used in laptop batteries), zinc (used in AA batteries) or nickel cadmium (used in power tool batteries).

Sorting batteries into their different chemistry types means more of the original material can be recovered to make new products.

There are different ways of recycling batteries; however, the aim is always the same – recovering the raw material used to make the battery so that it can be used again to make something new.

Below outlines some common battery types and the different ways the recovered materials can be used:

Lead Acid Batteries

• Battery Use – Cars, forklifts
• Recovered Materials – Lead, Polypropylene and Gypsum (from the acid).
• Potential Uses – Lead acid batteries, Battery cases – other products, Agriculture and other industries (filler for plasterboard and washing powder)

Nickel Cadmium

• Battery Use – Power tools
• Recovered Materials – Nickel, Steel, Cadmium
• Potential Uses – Metal Plating, Steel Industry, Batteries – restricted use

Zinc-based Batteries

• Battery Use – Domestic
• Recovered Materials – Steel, Zinc, Manganese
• Potential Uses – Steel Industry, Many Industrial Applications, Many Industrial Applications.

Nickel Metal Hydride

• Battery Use – Mobile phones
• Recovered Materials – Nickel, Steel.
• Potential Uses – Steel Industry

Lithium Ion

• Battery Use – Laptops
• Recovered Materials – Cobalt, Steel.
• Potential Uses – Electronics, battery, paint manufacture, Steel Industry.

Compass can provide an office battery safe for all domestic type of batteries which is collected FOC

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