U.S. Department of Transportation Issues New Battery

Recycling Regulations

UPDATE: As of November 25, 2009 the U.S. Department of Transportation is amending their battery recycling regulations. The new regulations state that dry rechargeable and non-rechargeable batteries with a marked rating of 9-volts or less do not have to be sealed with tape or placed separately in plastic bags to prevent battery contact. Batteries that are 9-volts or less can be left unsealed in recycling containers with batteries of the same chemistry, i.e., alkaline with alkaline, Ni-Cd with Ni-Cd, etc.

Batteries that are over 9-volts or that are not dry cell must be sealed in a way that prevents terminal exposure. See the U.S. DOT requirements below regarding sealing batteries for transport.

Download the new U.S. DOT letter stating this update here »

Questions about the new regulations? Feel free to contact us anytime.

In order to promote safety and compliance awareness, the US Dept. of Transportation recently released new guidelines for battery recycling and transportation. According to the DOT, action must be taken by waste generators to insure that batteries are packaged for recycling so that batteries will not short circuit and potentially endanger people in the area. Several suggestions have been outlined by the DOT to make recycling safer.

Download the Original Old advisory letter from the U.S. Dept. of Transportation »

If you are currently using an EasyPak battery recycling container, please make sure to follow these new guidelines when returning your container. Updates to the regulations will be reflected on new battery recycling containers.

Among the DOT's recommendations are the following guidelines:

    1. In order to prevent short circuiting, isolate batteries by placing each one in a separate plastic baggie or tape the terminals on the battery.  

    2. Make sure that outer packaging is marked and labeled to indicate that recycling containers contain batteries. Make sure that batteries are mentioned on all accompanying shipping documents.  

    3. Reporting is required for any incident involving batteries that results in fire, explosion, or dangerous evolution of heat.  

    4. With bulk quantities of batteries, generators and recyclers should avoid using steel drums and use plastic drums or buckets instead.

    DOWNLOAD THE FULL ADVISORY LETTER FROM THE U.S. DEPT. OF TRANSPORTATION »

    Learn more about battery recycling options from LampRecycling.com »