Is it ok to bring in leaky batteries?
They can be disposed of at the Community Recycling Centre at Stotts Creek but they should be taped if they are Lithium. Please do not place in a sealed satchel or zipped bag as the water vapour in the air might condensate and react. Please ensure gloves are used as the discharge for all household batteries will be a corrosive paste.
Where can I recycle batteries?
- All household batteries, car and boat batteries can be taken free of charge to Stotts Creek Resource Recovery Centre.
- Small household batteries up to size 6V can be dropped off at Council's recycling stations located in the foyer of the Murwillumbah and Tweed Council offices.
- Battery World will accept any type of battery for recycling.
- Aldi Supermarkets accept household batteries for recycling - including AA, AAA, C, D & 9V.
Why should we recycle batteries?
Batteries contain non-renewable heavy metals that are toxic to human health and/or have eco-toxicity impacts if they exceed certain minimum concentrations in the natural environment. Lead, mercury and cadmium are particularly toxic, but other metals such as nickel can also be a concern if they leach into surface or ground water. Some batteries are less toxic but hazardous for other reasons. Lithium batteries can explode or catch fire in landfill, while button cells are dangerous if swallowed by children.
Batteries contain non-renewable materials such as lead, cadmium, steel, zinc, manganese, cobalt, silver, plastics and rare earth elements. Recycling of batteries will help conserve these non-renewable resources while offering a safe and environmentally responsible solution for end of life batteries.
What happens to batteries collected for recycling in Australia?
Batteries are sorted and then transported to recyclers here and overseas. At present only lead acid, mercury and silver batteries are recycled in Australia. Local reprocessing of alkaline and lithium batteries may become more viable as collection volumes increase.
If batteries are exported, do the transport impacts cancel out any environmental benefit?
We would need to do a full life cycle assessment (LCA) to know for sure, but LCAs of other products generally show that sea transport contributes a very small percentage of total energy costs. Batteries which need to be sent overseas are transported in large diesel-powered ships, which are very efficient.
Do we need to recycle ALL types of batteries, or just rechargeable batteries?
used batteries should be recycled to conserve valuable metals and to reduce environmental impacts in landfill.
Who should be responsible for recycling batteries?
Battery recycling is a shared responsibility between consumers, battery manufacturers, retailers, governments and recyclers.