Issues to consider
- Does your container allow you to see the batteries that have been left?
- Is the container fire retardant?
- Do you have a smoke alarm in your shop?
- Is there a responsible person?
- Are they trained?
- Have you revisited your Fire Risk assessment?
- Can you recognise the higher risk batteries?
- What should you do with lead acid batteries and batteries with trailing wires?
Since 1st February this year most battery retailers have had to provide a recycling facility for the general public. Our customers clearly like the service that we provide as they have filled our container 3 times – that’s around 90 kg of used batteries. For us the collection process works well – just a phone call to the scheme providers, Valpac, and a lorry arrives within a few days to take the used batteries away.
That’s all working fine, but have you written a risk assessment for recycled batteries yet?
It took me 6 months to work through the challenge and I have had the help of a national waste recycling manager for a major waste company giving me guidance, one of our newspaper delivery boy dad’s. Very useful.
There are of course many more issue to consider, but this list should give you somewhere to start.
