From Sydney to Geelong, through South Australia and Western Australia, libraries are getting in on the battery recycling act.
Their focus is on the collection of small, domestic batteries such as:
- Cell-type batteries – AAA, AA, C and D alkaline and carbon batteries
- Button batteries from calculators, watches and many toys
- 9-volt batteries (commonly used in smoke detectors)
- Mobile phone batteries
- Small, rechargeable batteries from cameras, cordless phones, shavers and some power tool batteries.
An educational dividend
Libraries are ideal collection points. They enjoy thousands of visits from community-minded people every month. And because they are found in convenient locations, it’s much easier to schedule a trip to the library than, say, an out-of-the-way waste and recycling centre.
With younger members of society big users of library services, libraries also have a fantastic opportunity to educate children (and adults), on the importance and ease of battery recycling.
With only a small fraction of batteries being recycled, education has a huge role to play in us getting anywhere near Switzerland’s impressive handheld battery recycling rate of 73%.
A global movement
Of course, it’s not just Australian libraries that provide battery recycling collection points; it’s a global trend.
Libraries from London to Texas and numerous other places run collection programs pretty much along the lines that Australian libraries do.
With collection points available globally, Australia should be able to massively boost battery recycling in no time.
While it may seem the few batteries we might drop off at any one time could hardly make a difference, just think of that small action being repeated, all around the world, millions, tens of millions or hundreds of millions of times. Now you’re part of something huge!
So easy to implement
It’s incredibly easy for a library to establish a battery collection program.
Ecocycle accepts all types of batteries for recycling. We provide convenient, pre-paid collection buckets ranging from two litres to 20 litres in size. For larger quantities, our solutions extend through wheelie bins, Nally bins and drums by the truckload.
We deliver your battery bucket or bin to your door. When it’s full, just give us a call and we’ll swap it for an empty one. Simple.
So how about we set a goal for every single library in Australia to be a battery recycling collection point? It really is achievable.
If you’re a librarian, give us a call on 1300 32 62 92 or fill in the form below. We’ll be in touch to help your library choose the battery recycling solution that’s right for you.
If you’re a library user and your library doesn’t have a battery collection program, point them in our direction and suggest that they start one. It’s through the small efforts of countless people that really big things can happen.
