Eucobat and European battery waste management organizations are conducting a joint campaign to mark European Battery Recycling Week (September 5 – 13) and urges European citizens to hand in all used batteries for recycling.
We all have used batteries lying around our homes, either forgotten in a drawer or left in old appliances that we no longer use. However, these batteries contain critical raw materials, such as lithium, that can be recovered and used to make new batteries.
With the occasion of European Battery Recycling Week, ECOTIC BAT joins the campaign carried out at European level by Eucobat and member organizations to bring to the public's attention the reasons why collecting used batteries is important and to remind them of the solutions for handing them over for recycling.
ECOTIC BAT contributes at national level with a vast network of collection points and collection and awareness initiatives (The kids do great deeds – national campaign for the collection of used batteries in kindergartens) and an operational experience of over 15 years at the national level. Each collected battery is sorted and processed in specialized facilities, where reusable materials such as zinc, iron, manganese, nickel, cobalt and lithium are recovered and reintroduced into the economy, including in the form of new batteries.
“Our members demonstrate every day that circularity is not a promise, but a practice. Every battery that comes back into the system means raw material regained for Europe, and thanks to the good practices we share in our network, batteries are recycled at full capacity. This is the story we are celebrating this week.”
Peter Coonen, President of Eucobat
New European targets raise the bar
To contribute to the protection of the environment and human health, no battery should end up in the trash or in any other waste stream other than that dedicated to used batteries. Batteries ending up in household waste can deteriorate and cause fires, but when are collected through the dedicated network of ECOTIC BAT and other Eucobat members, they go through dedicated sorting and recycling processes. The European Battery Regulation, published in July 2023, introduced ambitious collection targets, which the battery industry must achieve by the end of 2030. Achieving them requires the effort of everyone: manufacturers, transfer organizations, authorities and, above all, citizens. The fastest way to increase collection results is right in our homes. Almost every household has a drawer full of used batteries waiting to be handed in, but also batteries "hidden" in electrical equipment that are often overlooked by citizens. Where possible, these batteries should be removed from appliances and handed in to the nearest collection point.
In Romania, ECOTIC BAT operates a network of over 12.603 used battery collection points, in stores, educational institutions, public institutions and retail stores.
With the occasion of European Battery Recycling Week, ECOTIC BAT invites Romanians to check their drawers and hand in their used batteries at the nearest collection point. ECOTIC BAT has carried out a guide dedicated to separate battery collection and reminds that the most convenient solutions for handing over batteries for recycling are the stores that sell them and that have dedicated containers for them.
