Battery recycling continues this week

By Martin Allen

BELLEVILLE – Quinte Waste Solutions will be collecting old batteries for recycling from March 14 to March 25.

Residents of Belleville, Centre Hastings, Marmora and Lake, Madoc Township, Prince Edward County, Quinte West, Stirling-Rawdon, Tyendinaga Township and Tweed should use the bags that were delivered on March 3 for any old and defunct batteries. Residents who did not receive a bag can pick one up at their local municipal office.

Daniel Orr, communications director for Quinte Waste Solutions, says the batteries contain precious metals that are too good to waste.

“Nickel, steel, zinc, manganese and potassium are all worth recovering,” he says. “The materials from batteries can be used again instead of relying on virgin sources that need to be mined or transported, which takes more energy and resources.”

Orr says there’s another reason to recycle batteries.

“Some people tend to throw out their batteries with the mindset that it’s only one battery, and what harm can one battery do?  The reality is that if we are all throwing out our batteries then that one battery quickly turns into thousands. And thousands of batteries in landfill has the potential to contaminate groundwater, surface water and soil.”

After the batteries are collected by recycling pick up crews, they are collected in drums at a plant in Trenton. These drums are then transported to Port Colborne, Ont where 100 percent of the battery is recovered and reused.

The program has recovered 45,000 pounds of batteries since 2013.

Residents are still able to drop off their batteries year round at Quinte Waste Solutions in Belleville.

For more information you can visit quinterecycling.org.