If there’s one item you should always think twice about tossing in your household rubbish, it’s batteries.

It’s not just poor form from an environmental perspective – improper battery disposal has broad consequences. The industry, facilities, and staff of Queensland's waste services face increasing risks from unsafe battery disposal.

The good news? There are alternative ways to ditch your dead batteries without jeopardising anyone’s safety (or harming the environment).

Read on to learn how to dispose of batteries safely in Queensland.

Battery-powered devices: the most common culprits

If you feel like almost everything has a battery in it these days, you’re not alone. While it’s easy to see where standard AA and AAA batteries belong in some devices, built-in rechargeable batteries are much trickier to deal with.

Batteries are found in many everyday household items, including laptops, mobile phones, power tools, electric toothbrushes, Bluetooth speakers, items that light up, kid’s toys, e-scooters and e-bikes, vapes, and cameras.

Where to dispose of batteries or battery-operated items you no longer use

We’ve established that your dead electronics and old AAs don’t belong in your wheelie bins – so how do you recycle or safely dispose of batteries correctly in Queensland?

Safe battery disposal options vary for the different types of batteries and battery-operated items – it’s not a one-size-fits-all approach. Use the resources below to check your knowledge.

• Use Recycle Mate to search for the closest disposal location for different types of batteries and battery-operated items. The Recycle Mate app lets you take a picture of your item and will identify the nearest collection points for safe disposal and recycling based on your location.
• Contact your local Council for battery collection locations in your area and guidance on how to safely dispose of large or damaged batteries, or items with embedded batteries such as mobile phones, electric toothbrushes, Bluetooth speakers, e-bikes, or power tools.
• For loose single-use batteries such as AAs or AAAs, many Coles, Woolworths, Aldi, Battery World, and Bunnings outlets have B-Cycle collections in store – so you can drop off your batteries, and they’ll do the rest. Visit the B-Cycle website to find your nearest collection point.

Why you should never bin batteries

Fire hazards: Improperly disposed batteries, especially lithium-ion ones, pose a significant fire risk. If punctured, crushed, or exposed to high temperatures, they can spark and ignite, leading to fires that are difficult to control. Fires caused by batteries in waste and recycling facilities have become a growing problem, endangering workers, damaging infrastructure, and releasing harmful smoke and toxins into the air.

Landfill pollution: When batteries are thrown into general waste, they often end up in landfill, where they take years to break down. Most batteries contain metals like lithium, cadmium, and lead, which do not decompose naturally and contribute to long-term pollution.

Toxicity: Batteries contain hazardous substances that can leak into the environment if they are damaged or exposed to moisture. Heavy metals and toxic chemicals can seep into the soil, affecting plant life and contaminating groundwater supplies. This pollution can eventually make its way into rivers, lakes, and oceans, harming aquatic ecosystems and posing risks to wildlife and human health.

It’s never been more important to safely dispose of and recycle batteries. Visit the B-cycle website to learn how batteries are recycled and why we need to close the loop.

Safe storage and handling of used batteries

It’s not exactly convenient to head to a battery disposal facility if you only have a couple of loose AA batteries to get rid of – so for some folks, waiting to accumulate a stockpile of dead batteries makes more sense. Here are some simple safety tips for storing used batteries before disposal:

• Keep used batteries in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight, heat sources, or flammable materials.
• To prevent short circuits and fire hazards, tape the terminals (tops and bottoms) of lithium-ion, rechargeable, and button cell batteries with non-conductive tape or pop them in their original packaging.
• Store batteries in a non-metallic container, such as a glass jar or plastic box, rather than a metal tin where they could spark if they come into contact.
• If a battery is damaged, leaking or has been submerged in water, handle it with care. Wear gloves to avoid contact with harmful chemicals, place the battery in a sealed plastic bag and promptly contact your local council to ask how these batteries should be disposed of in your local area. Follow your Council’s guidelines on how to safely dispose of any damaged or leaking batteries, especially lithium-ion batteries, as soon as possible.

Remember: don’t bin your batteries!

Let the footage of a flaming waste truck be a reminder of what can happen when batteries end up in kerbside bins. Please dispose of your used batteries thoughtfully – the environment and our waste management workers will thank you for it!