Disposable vapes that are designed for single-use, contain a variety of constituent parts that make them difficult to recycle. E-cigarette devices typically contain an encased lithium-ion battery that cannot be easily removed. If damaged, these devices can lead to substantial fire hazard risk from self-combustion in waste collection vehicles. Fires not only endanger waste workers but they can also destroy equipment and have an adverse environmental impact. An average 14 million single use vapes are bought each month.
Please do not put disposable vapes in any of your recycling containers, your household waste bin, a street bin, or just discard them anywhere.
Under the strict WEEE (waste electrical and electronic equipment) rules vapes must be disposed of at your local Household Waste Reception Centre, a designated collection facility, or the shop where you bought them from. Totally Wicked in St Helens are one of the retailers taking part in a take back scheme, they will take any brand of vape bought from a different retailer. Find your nearest shop
Please Note : When disposing of a single use vape, please leave it intact, you should never try to dismantle vape casing batteries yourself, some materials found in used vaping devices, such as liquid nicotine or used wicks, can be dangerous.. If your device is rechargeable and has a removeable battery, this can be recycled but not at home, please take it to a local supermarket, lots of them have battery disposal collection points.
This is the damage inflicted to one of our road sweepers, by the littering of disposable vapes and batteries.
It follows a similar event last year, and the recent fire in one of our household waste collection vehicles. This is not a theoretical concern; it's a real-world danger, as this picture makes it alarmingly and painfully clear.
Fortunately, no staff or residents were injured by the blaze that broke out.
Please do not discard vapes or batteries on the street!! Our crew member was outside the vehicle when this happened. It could have been prevented, if the vape had been recycled in the correct way.
Batteries
Hidden and loose batteries need to be disposed of in the correct way, lithium-ion batteries are hidden inside many everyday household electricals, from laptops, mobile phones and tablets, to electric toothbrushes, vapes and earpods, please do not put them in your normal recycling containers or household waste bin - so it's really important to recycle them properly. Please do not bin batteries!
These batteries can become crushed or damaged in our vehicles if they aren't recycled properly and can lead to fires. When crushed or damaged lIthium-ion batteries can be dangerous to the public, waste operators and firefighters as they cause fires that are especially challenging to tackle. They can lead to explosions and chemical exposure, but they create their own oxygen, which means they can keep reigniting, prolonging incidents with smoke and fumes affecting neighbouring areas and communities for long periods of time of up to a week.
Recycling common batteries - Common household batteries include lithium-ion button batteries from watches, hearing aids, etc, as well as standard barrel-type batteries (AAs, AAAs and so on). You must recycle these household batteries at dedicated battery collection points. Find your nearest battery recycling point
Recycling battery packs - You can recycle battery packs from laptops, mobile phones, power tools and remote control units at dedicated battery collection points. If you can't remove the power pack take to your local Household Waste Recycling Centre - but never in the general waste bin.
Recycling car batteries - By law you mustn't dispose of car batteries in a rubbish bin. In the UK you can recycle car batteries at designated collection points. These includes many Household Waste Recycling Centres, garages and scrap yards. Or, if a specialist is replacing your car battery, they might be able to dispose of the old one safely for you.
