I was surprised to learn from the US EPA that 40% of batteries are bought during the holiday season.
With all of the batteries we use at our FixitUpHouse with our 1-year-old’s toys (and with the new ones he’ll be getting tomorrow morning), I feel a little responsible for a piece of that battery consumption. And after recently becoming a fan of the entertaining ‘Living with Ed’ series…I’m planning to make an effort to reduce our household’s ridiculous consumption.
The answer for me isn’t reducing the number of battery-powered toys….Oh no. It took us a year to get Jack to sleep through the night and be pleasant during the daylight hours, so I’m cautious to make any changes that provide a slice of calm happiness in my baby’s world. (Oh, yes, he’s currently the king of our FixitUpLife.)
We’re turning to rechargeable batteries. They cost about $2 to $12 per battery for the AAA to D size, and are easily found. I like the website www.greenbatteries.com where there’s tons of batteries and chargers, including solar-powered chargers.
If you are curious about recycling rechargeable batteries, check out the Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corp at www.call2recycle.org to find a place that recycles rechargeables near you. And if you want to know how they are recycled, click on their ‘Recycling Information’ link to read how Nickel Cadmium, NMH, Lithium Ion, Lead Acid batteries are stripped, broken, hammered, washed, melted, shredded for their recyclable parts.
Also, visit www.Earth911.com for recycling of disposable alkalines, too.
When I was on that site, I found cool ‘green’ gift ideas that might be too late for the holidays this year, but worth keeping in mind for those eco-conscious friends’ birthdays in 2010. Included are travel bags from recycled fire hoses, messenger bags from seat belts, a gift tree that is planted in your friends’ name at a US National forest, and even a portable solar electronics charger for iPod, cell phone, batteries, too.
