Cincinnati Setting Up Battery Recycling Drop Off Areas to Prevent Fires

Lithium-ion batteries continue to be an issue for landfills, causing fires all over the place. Now, a new battery recycling program is starting in Cincinnati to help.

The Cincinnati Recycling and Resue hub is setting up a drop off location for old electronics. The center has partnered with local fire stations to make the collection even more convenient for residents.

The program is free to use to drop off old electronics to keep those temperamental batteries out of waste streams, preventing future fires and other issues.

"People want to do good for the most part, but when they don't know what else to do with it, they throw it away. Some of it is just not necessarily knowing the details," said Collen McSwiggin, Cincinnati Recycling and Reuse Hub's executive director.

"Somebody probably thought, 'This is just a cardboard paper birthday card. We'll recycle that,' without thinking, 'Hey, there had to be a battery in there to actually make the sound happen,' and then, when that got crushed in the equipment, it caused fire."

The Recycling and Reuse Hub’s lithium-ion battery and electronic collection will be a big help to Rumpke Waste and Recycling, plus will help local firefighters.

Four fire departments are participating in the program. The program will sort the batteries once they are dropped off into “damaged” or “undamaged” areas.

"Damaged lithium-ion is actually contained into three different things -- it's bagged, it has an absorbent material in the event that it is leaking, and then into an airtight container that you see within the bucket," said Colerain Township Department of Fire and EMS special project manager Robert Rielage.

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