Wrongly discarded batteries fuel rising waste facility fires

Improperly discarded lithium batteries and lithium ion batteries are increasingly causing fires at waste disposal facilities, ORF reported. Even minor damage can ignite them, prompting waste associations to urge consumers to dispose of batteries and rechargeable batteries correctly.

At waste disposal company Brantner in Krems, residual waste is fed into a large press using heavy construction machinery. “If a rechargeable battery breaks there, a flame starts immediately,” said Oliver Fischer, the company’s operations manager.

Brantner Austria recorded 65 fires caused by incorrectly discarded batteries and rechargeable batteries last year. The company was able to extinguish most of them itself.

Companies invest in fire prevention

Brantner safety officer Roland Schönbichler said the company’s most recent fire involved a flashing children’s shoe containing a lithium ion battery. Such batteries should never be placed in residual waste or the yellow recycling bin, he said.

The Krems company has upgraded its technology, including a fire alarm control centre and thermal cameras that detect emerging fires. It also has an in house fire brigade with about 40 members.

Devices containing lithium batteries or lithium ion batteries should be taken to recycling collection centres or returned to shops that accept them.

Schönbichler said the waste industry was being “flooded” with lithium ion batteries. A single waste collection vehicle can now contain up to 70 of them, creating potential fire hazards. They are found in everyday items ranging from electric toothbrushes to wireless headphones.

Over the past 10 years, the number of lithium batteries and rechargeable batteries incorrectly disposed of in residual waste has risen by 300 percent, according to the report. They are the main cause of fires at waste collection facilities.