New Laws regarding Batteries and Fluorescent Lamps.
As of February 9, 2006 State law requires all types of household batteries and fluorescent lamps to be recycled. They can no longer be thrown in the trash.
These items can be recycled at all the Household Hazardous waste facilities.
Click here for schedules for Oakland, Hayward and Livermore
Stockpile spent batteries - use a 2 or 5 gallon bucket to store spent batteries in a cool dry place. Bring them in when the bucket is full.
Switch to rechargeable batteries. It will save resources and money too.
Most common consumer devices that use standard AAA-D cells can use rechargeable Nickel Metal Hydride (NIMH) batteries with no loss of function and longer battery life than alkalines. A typical NIMH AA battery costs about $ 2.50 retail versus about $0.50 for a disposable AA battery - after only 5 uses the rechargeable will pay for itself. Rechargeable batteries can last for hundreds of charge cycles potentially saving thousands of dollars over the course of a few years for today's battery hungry electronic devices and cameras.
With a modest investment of about $ 50.00 a typical family can reduce the number of spent batteries they generate by 80% or more by switching to rechargeable batteries. For as little as $10.00 some drugstores and office supply stores are selling a starter kit of 4 AA batteries and a charger. Rechargeable are even cheaper purchased in bulk over the Internet.
One area where you should be careful with rechargeable is in critical safety equipment like smoke detectors, critical medical devices, and emergency kit items like flashlights and radios. Disposable alkaline batteries still have an advantage over rechargeable batteries when it comes to shelf life. Follow the manufacturers recommendations for these items.
For questions call 1-800-606-6606 or email the HHW program
Information about recycling of electronic devices is available on the web at Stopwaste.org or by calling toll free 877-786-7927
