Minimise: where possible, minimise your battery consumption
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Recharge your battery habits this National Recycling Week
5 November 2024
Charge up your recycling habits this National Recycling Week.
Learn what you can do to up your recycling game this National Recycling Week. With battery recycling points across campus, it's easy to get involved in making a difference.
National Recycling Week (11–17 November) asks us to be better at recycling. It’s the perfect time to think about how we manage our waste. With the ever increasing demand for battery power, Australia’s battery waste is projected to increase tenfold by 2030.
Our university community is already doing well at keeping batteries out of landfill, recycling 110 kg of batteries in 2023 across our campuses. But together, we can do better!
Recycling batteries is a simple action with a big impact on both the environment and public health. Heavy metals like lead, cadmium, and lithium contained in batteries can leach into the soil and water sources, contaminating local ecosystems. Lithium-ion batteries require specific handling due to their chemical instability, which can pose fire risks if not managed correctly.
The good news is that up to 95 percent of battery components can be recycled, making new batteries or products, which supports the circular economy.
So, how can you join your fellow students in upping your battery recycling game? Follow these three principles when faced with a flat battery.
Stay in charge of your battery game
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Choose to reuse: Opt for rechargeable batteries. This option keeps your battery in use for longer
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Recycle: Single-use batteries, rechargeable batteries, button cell batteries (AA, AAA, C, D and 9V) and button-sized batteries can be placed in the collection boxes in the following campus locations:
Camperdown/Darlington
- Charles Perkins Centre (D17), Concierge Desk, Level 1
- Susan Wakil Health Building (D18), Concierge Desk, Level 2
- Sydney Nanoscience Hub (A31), Concierge Desk, Level 2
- Fisher Library (F03), Concierge Desk, Level 3
- Michael Spence Building (F23), Concierge Desk
- Services Building (G12), Helpdesk Counter
- Enabler Recycling Wall (G01), Wentworth Building
Mallet Street
- Mallet St Building C (M02C), Helpdesk Counter
Camden
- Centre for Carbon Water and Food (C02F), Level 2, Reception
- JL Shute Building (C01A), Reception
- PBI (C44-C45), Reception
A battery recycling point at Level 3 of the Wentworth Building.
What about built-in batteries?
If you can’t detach your battery from the device (i.e. vapes, electronic toothbrushes, shavers), you should leave the battery in place and take it to your closest Community Recycling Centre embedded battery trial location.
Three tips for better battery recycling
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Never thrown your batteries in the red landfill bins. Not only are they bad for the environment, if batteries are damaged or crushed they can start a fire.
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Tape the battery terminals with clear sticky tape when recycling. This will minimise the risk of batteries sparking during collection.
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If you are collecting a bunch of batteries to recycle at once, consider how you store them. Avoid airtight containers which could build pressure, metal containers or storing them with other medial objects. Keep them in a cool, dry place away from children until you are ready to recycle.
By choosing rechargeable options battery options and recycling correctly, you’re contributing to a cleaner, more sustainable future.
Want to become a recycling master?
Sign up to one of three Recycling Masterclasses held during National Recycling Week, hosted by City of Sydney Council.
Connect with Sustainability at Sydney
To learn more about how you can make a difference, get involved with sustainability initiatives across campus, and discover more sustainable tips, connect with the Sustainability team.
Sign up to the sustainability mailing list or follow @sustainability_usyd on Instagram. Together, we can create a healthier, more sustainable community – one step, ride, or journey at a time.