Disposable e-cigarette batteries disrupt UK waste management

Millions of disposable e-cigarettes are collected with the trash and their batteries can catch fire when broken. Waste treatment centers must face this new complication with the help of fire detection technologies.

Of the 2.6 million disposable e-cigarettes ('puffs') sold each week in the UK, at least half are believed to be thrown on the ground or in household waste[1]. THE environmental consequences The environmental consequences of the puffs' consumption boom among young people have already been widely highlighted, as these products contain batteries, plastics, electronic components and toxic liquids. Today, it is the waste treatment and recycling centres that are facing the environmental consequences of the surge in puffs consumption among young people.

Increase in fires in the waste circuit

Composed of lithium, the batteries of disposable e-cigarettes can catch fire when they are broken or damaged, which happens regularly during various waste treatment operations.

A study conducted by Material Focus, an organization involved in a campaign to recycle electrical equipment, has recorded more than 700 fires caused by different types of batteries and affecting garbage trucks and recycling centers.[2]. These fires can also occur in bales of non-recyclable waste, in which the puffs often end up after use. It is currently still difficult to determine the share that would be properly attributable to the puffs, since the batteries of other electrical devices can cause similar damage. Nevertheless, the mass of these puffs places them at the top of the list of electronic waste discarded without precaution.

New constraints for sorting centers

The increase in these fires has led insurers to increase their insurance premiums and become more reluctant to insure recycling centers. Their safety requirements have also become more stringent, requiring recycling centers to equip themselves with thermal imaging cameras to detect batteries and automated water cannons to extinguish fires. Companies have also developed artificial intelligence systems that can detect puffs on a conveyor belt using a camera.

This observation confirms that recovery channels must be put in place to avoid the dissemination of lithium batteries from electronic cigarettes and the many risks, toxic or fire, that can result. This question concerns all electronic cigarettes, whether disposable or not. Furthermore, the additional costs generated by the management of batteries after use of the products should logically be included according to the polluter pays principle.

Keywords: UK, disposable e-cigarettes, puffs, batteries, fires, waste.

M.F.

[1] A study published by the Truth Initiative showed that in the United States, this proportion is estimated at up to two thirds of puffs. United States: millions of non-recycled puffs end up in the trash, Tobacco-Free Generation, published December 16, 2022, accessed January 8, 2023.

[2] Tapper J, Single-use vapes sparking surge in fires at UK waste plants, The Guardian, published May 13, 2023, accessed January 8, 2023.