(NewsNation) — Have a collection of old phones, computers and other electronics? A new initiative by the Biden administration makes it easier for people to recycle most battery-powered electronics.
The U.S. Department of Energy announced a $14 million program to fund more than 1,000 consumer battery collection sites at Staples and Batteries Plus stores across the country. This is part of a $62 million effort announced by the Biden administration in April to boost battery recycling.
The initiative addresses an electronics waste problem created by the billions of phones being discarded each year.
Smartphones contain lithium-ion batteries that can leak toxic chemicals into the environment or spark dangerous fires if damaged, punctured, or exposed to excessive heat, making them unsafe to discard in household garbage or recycling.
Battery improper disposal isn’t just an environmental problem; the DOE sees it as an economic problem as well. Many rechargeable batteries contain lithium, nickel, cobalt, graphite and manganese — critical materials needed to make clean energy technologies, including wind turbines and electric vehicles. With EV sales growing in the U.S., more of these materials will be needed.
“With hundreds of drop-off points across the country, we’re making it easier to recycle batteries from old cellphones and laptops — in turn allowing us to reuse the critical minerals we would normally source from China for new clean energy manufacturing. At DOE, we’re excited to help create a circular, sustainable domestic supply chain,” U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm said.