WANTED DEAD BATTERIES !!!

VALCORE Recycling is proud to announce a new recycling program. Starting March 1, we will accept all household batteries for recycling. This includes heavy-duty, alkaline, and rechargeable batteries. Auto batteries should be taken to the Vallejo Garbage BOPA facility located at 2021 Broadway every Thursday through Saturday (8:00 am to 4:00 pm).

Americans throw away more than 2.5 billion batteries each year. When improperly disposed, batteries can corrode and leach toxic material into the earth and drinking water. Most of us assume that batteries are safe. I routinely pick up batteries when I am walking. One time I noticed that something in my pocket was getting really hot. The batteries were still active and were reacting to each other causing extreme heat.

Have you ever looked closely at the battery label? You may be in for a surprise. Every battery has a warning on it. Here are a few examples: “Do not dispose of in fire, recharge, put in backwards, mix with used or other battery types. Battery may explode or leak and cause personal injury. Do not open battery. Battery may explode, get hot or leak and cause personal injury.”

Since 1993, battery companies have removed mercury from their batteries because of the hazards that mercury causes when leaked into ground water. They insist that batteries can be safely disposed with normal household waste and don’t see the need to encourage recycling.

One company, Battery Solutions in Brighton, Michigan, has taken a lead in recycling household batteries. On their website they explain how they recycle batteries. “The batteries are shredded and given a slight acid bath to neutralize the electrolyte. This material is run through a rotary kiln to dry. At this point, carbon steel turnings are blended in at a ratio of 20-40 parts to 1 part of battery material. This blended material is pressed into bricks which are magnetic and transported to a steel mill for processing. In the furnace of the steel mill, the zinc from the battery is fumed off into a vacuum baghouse for recovery and resale as zinc-oxide. The manganese dioxide becomes an alloy in the production of re-bar steel.”

Rechargeable batteries are another can of worms as some contain hazardous wastes. Using rechargeable batteries significantly reduces both waste and the need for new batteries to be manufactured and purchased. Portable rechargeable batteries including Nickel Cadmium (Ni-Cd), Nickel metal Hydride (Ni-MH), Lithium Ion (Li-ion) and Small Sealed Lead (Pb) are commonly found in cordless power tools, laptop computers, cellular and cordless telephones, camcorders, portable vacuums, two-way radios, emergency lighting and other wireless electronic devices. Those devices have dramatically changed and improved our lives.

Rechargeable batteries enable users to enjoy the mobility and convenience necessary in today’s fast-paced society. Depending on the application, some rechargeable batteries can recharge up to 1,000 times. Once rechargeable batteries can no longer hold a charge, they can and should be recycled.

We have used rechargeable batteries for years with great success. I checked my cordless phones and two-way radios and both had a Ni-Cd battery labeled with a recycling triangle and 800 822-8837 which is the hot line for recycling rechargeable batteries. The Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corp.’s (RBRC) program “Charge Up to Recycle!” lists retail stores and recycling centers that will take back these batteries. RBRC collected 4 million pounds of rechargeable batteries in 2003 in the U.S. and Canada, an increase of 22 percent from the previous year. Since 1995, they have recycled a total of over 21.9 million pounds of rechargeable batteries.

The next time you need to purchase batteries, please consider rechargeable batteries over disposable and do not toss those spent ones in the trash. Bring them to our recycling center located at 38 Sheridan Street (cross street is Solano Avenue). We are open Monday through Saturday from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm (5:30 pm, April - October). You can also take your batteries to the Vallejo-Napa Household Hazardous Waste Collection facility located at 889 Devlin Road north of American Canyon. They are open every Friday and Saturday from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. Call 800-984-9661 for more information.

VALCORE Recycling Vice President Jane Bogner's "A Sorted Affair" is published every other week in the Times-Herald, Community Outlook Section. For recycling information call Genie Kaggerud, VALCORE Recycling manager at 645-8258 or visit www.VALCORErecycling.org.