“Royce Launches Successful Initiative to Recycle Disposable Batteries in Hong Kong”

[Yahoo News Report]Hong Kong people use more than 100 million batteries every year, but the current government “green in the district” only recycles rechargeable batteries, and discarded batteries are sent to landfills as general garbage. Some social workers started collecting old batteries in the community in February this year, and the public responded better than expected. By early May, more than 80 kilograms of disposable batteries had been collected, equivalent to more than 3,000 2A batteries. She hopes that through recycling activities, the public’s awareness of recycling disposable batteries will be raised. In the future, she will also consider applying for government funds to expand the recycling program.

Each battery pollutes one square foot of land

Royce, a social worker born in the 1980s, once lived with several environmentalists, which greatly improved his environmental awareness and learned that there is no large-scale recycling of disposable batteries in Hong Kong. Batteries contain toxic substances such as mercury, cadmium, and lead. She emphasized that disposable batteries are difficult to decompose naturally, and the toxicity of each battery can pollute one square foot of land, so they should not be buried in landfills at all.

According to data from the Environmental Protection Agency, Hong Kong people use more than 120 million dry batteries every year, of which disposable batteries account for 80% to 90%. Royce began to study how to recycle disposable batteries in 2021, and found that the contractors who deal with waste rechargeable batteries in “Green in the District” originally had the ability to recycle disposable batteries, but government contracts were not included. If a large number of disposable batteries are received together, additional Increase recycling costs. Royce called the EPA to check, but they said they could dispose of it like normal garbage and send it to the landfill.

At present, Hong Kong people generally do not have a high awareness of recycling disposable batteries. Royce launched the initiative in February this year., by way of appointment and mobile street stations, plastic buckets and trolleys are carried in the community to recycle old batteries for recyclers to extract metals from them for reuse. By the beginning of May, a total of more than 80 kilograms of batteries have been recycled. She hopes to use this to encourage citizens to collect disposable batteries from friends around them, so as to spread the message of battery recycling.

Citizens spontaneously collect 40 pounds of batteries

She said with a smile that the public’s response to the recycling was better than expected. The people who participated in the recycling came from different sectors, and most of them were parents, because children’s toys used more batteries. There were also retirees who collected old batteries in the district and handed them over to her for recycling. She herself mainly recycles in the area from Prince Edward to Whampoa, but she will receive disposable batteries from Hong Kong Island residents. A large amount of… “Green in the mere area” should be recycled.”

Her efforts attracted the participation of many small shops with similar ideas, and set up their own “recycling points” to collect old batteries. Royce appealed to small shops on Hong Kong Island to respond and set up their own recycling points to collect old batteries and send them to the collection point in Causeway Bay before handing them over to recyclers. However, she will not disclose the address of the collection point for the time being, in order to avoid a surge in pressure on the collection point. “Recycling has a cost, and the government should allocate funds to the contractor to do it.”

She suggested that when recycling old batteries, the public should ensure that the batteries are disposable, so there is no need to reclassify them; the safest thing is to use No. 2 plastic containers to store the recycled batteries. She will check and confirm that the batteries concerned are disposable and clean before handing them over to recyclers. She does not recommend that the public recycle the leaking battery. If it is just a slight “sweat”, it can be recycled by simply wiping it clean.

The recycling program has been well received, and some audio-visual stores have invited her to help recycle disposable batteries, but Royce will only do community recycling at this stage. She is currently a freelancer and does not consider finding a full-time job for the time being. In the future, she may apply for funding from the government’s “Community Waste Reduction Project” and other funds to officially start battery recycling work, or recruit other like-minded people to form associations to promote and recycle in the community .

The Environmental Protection Agency explained on the official website that the cost of recycling disposable batteries is higher than that of rechargeable batteries, and there are fewer harmful metals, and the value of a small amount of iron, zinc and manganese that can be extracted is not high. In addition, recycling facilities for disposable batteries are mainly Located in Europe and the United States, the shipping costs are high, so the economic and environmental benefits of overall recycling are not as good as rechargeable batteries. The Environmental Protection Agency also pointed out that landfills in Hong Kong have been laid with impermeable layers, which can intercept and treat leachate sewage, so disposable batteries can be disposed of safely.

Disposable Battery Collection Points

Kowloon Bay｜Daily work

Tsim Sha Tsui｜Green Bitch

Tai Kok Tsui｜Save Smart

Sham Shui Po｜One Punch Library

Jordan｜Egaoco HK

Saigon｜Seed

Tuen Mun｜Yi-cycle

Hong Kong Island, Tsuen Wan｜Hidden Gems HK

Central｜Uncle’s Store

Waterworks | Reputation Love Workshop

Hong Kong｜The Loops

Recycling advice:

1. Collect 20 to 30 disposable batteries in total before making an appointment for recycling

2. Make sure all batteries are disposable, not rechargeable

3. The battery can be contained in the No. 2 rubber container

4. Avoid collecting leaking batteries