Battery recycling takes on added heft in Puerto Rico

With many Puerto Ricans having spent weeks or even months without electricity in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, the commonwealth’s dependence on and use of battery-operated devices grew significantly in late 2017 and early 2018. For battery recyclers, that means more material to collect on the island.

According to an online article from the Guaynabo, Puerto Rico-based El Nuevo Dia, a non-governmental organization has responded by developing a program to collect and recycle alkaline batteries in Puerto Rico.

The non-governmental organization Basura Cero [Zero Waste] Puerto Rico announced in late January it had developed a program to collect and recycle alkaline batteries, targeting in particular those used in the four months following Hurricane Maria’s landfall in Puerto Rico on Sept. 20, 2017.

Basura Cero Puerto Rico Executive Director Jessica Seiglie, is quoted as saying, “Hurricane Maria and the lack of electrical service on the island have turned batteries into essential items, [so we have looked] for viable and accessible alternatives for their disposal.”

Among the locations cooperating in the organization’s effort to set up alkaline battery collection points are Walgreens, courts and non-governmental organizations, according to the online article.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) also is cooperating in the effort, according go the El Nuevo Dia article, as a way to prevent batteries from contaminating the environment.

Ultimately, the collected batteries will be forwarded to a recycling company, according to Basura Cero Puerto Rico. The collection campaign will run through March 2019.