PARK CITY, Utah — Billions of single-use batteries are used every year but a Park City nonprofit is working to ensure those items don’t end up in a landfill.
Recycle Utah offers recycling services free of charge for more than 50 items – including batteries.
The organization relies on sponsorships, donations and volunteers.
“I come in every Thursday for four hours and sort batteries. That’s all I do. That's my job,” said volunteer Ellen Sherk. “I am the battery queen.”
Sherk sorts through buckets of batteries every week and prepares them to be sent to a recycling facility.
“I usually wear a mask when I do this because of the battery acid dust that comes up with me just here,” she said. “So think about all of that going into the landfill and into the environment.”
Recycling batteries prevents harmful toxins from leaching into the ground or drinking water. The process also allows valuable materials to find a second life.
“There’s materials that can be reused and at this point, the demand for those materials is more than what is being mined and so it's important to keep them in circulation,” said Troy Holding, the operations director of Recycle Utah.
Items like zinc and steel can be saved from used batteries.
While their service is free, Recycle Utah absorbs the cost to send the items to the recycling plant along with the cost of processing.
“Sadly, it probably costs us about $1500 - $2000 to properly get these recycled,” Holding explained.
One sponsor of Recycle Utah is a company called Pale Blue.
Through their lithium-ion rechargeable battery products, Pale Blue hopes to make single-use batteries a thing of the past.
“One four-pack of our double A’s could replace three, five-gallon buckets of alkaline double A's in its lifetime,” said Pale Blue CEO Tom Bishop. “If you were to charge our batteries once a week, you could use them for 20 years.”
Bishop believes the sustainability and value of reusable batteries can eliminate the need for disposables.
Until then, community organizations like Recycle Utah will do their part to make the world a better place.
“We are here to help save the world,” Sherk said. “And give our children and the next generation a better place to live.”
