After keeping these old yogurt containers as storage bins for my used alkaline batteries (and 2 rechargeable ones) for more months (perhaps years?) than I remember...
And after creating yet another storage container for a new twirly CF light bulb that died prematurely and now needs to be recycled to avoid polluting the environment...
I happily discovered that my neighborhood Home Depot store now recycles batteries and energy-efficient CF light bulbs.
So this morning I wandered over with my containers in my re-usable shopping bag - to dispose of my toxic waste! (As some of you may know, I'm trying to get rid of 100 things I no longer need in my house this week...)
They had a place for recycling the light bulb (I had to bag it first) - and for the alkaline batteries...
But I had to bring my rechargeable batteries back home with me... Mmmmmm
I do appreciate your recycling efforts, Home Depot... so I don't mean to complain when I say, Why does recycling have to be so hard?!
When I first posted on recycling on March 15, 2009, I had touched a nerve that a lot of us respond to. Thank you, readers, for commenting on recycling...
There seems to be uncertainty as to whether or not alkaline batteries pose a threat to landfills - though rechargeable ones certainly do. I have no special knowledge on the topic, but I found an interesting discussion on this website:
http://willtaft.com/environment/there-may-be-no-need-to-recycle-alkaline-batteries/
From what I read there - (and I'm no scientist!) - my understanding is that there is less danger in alkaline batteries now, since they no longer contain mercury - but they do still contain "heavy metals" and this poses a danger to the environment.
What are "heavy metals"? you may wonder - as I did. (All metals seem pretty heavy to me.)
I chose this US Government website to help me understand.
So I think I should continue recycling alkaline batteries.
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