eWASA News – 29 Oct 2021

Lithium-ion batteries, with their use of riskily mined metals, tarnish the green image of EVs. Recycling to recover those valuable metals would minimize the social and environmental impact of mining, keep millions of tons of batteries from landfills, and cut the energy use and emissions created from making batteries.

But while the EV battery recycling industry is starting to take off, getting carmakers to use recycled materials remains a hard sell. \”In general, people\’s impression is that recycled material is not as good as virgin material,\” says Yan Wang, a professor of mechanical engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. \”Battery companies still hesitate to use recycled material in their batteries.\”

A new study by Wang and a team including researchers from the US Advanced Battery Consortium (USABC), and battery company A123 Systems, shows that battery and carmakers needn\’t worry. The results, published in the journal Joule, show that batteries with recycled cathodes can be as good as, or even better than those using new state-of-the-art materials. Read more in IEEE Spectrum

Here are seven reasons to keep in mind as leaders and policymakers discuss how to tackle our climate crisis:

1. We’re using more than the Earth can provide.

2. Over-extraction harms people, the planet and economies.

3. Our waste is out of control.

4. Landfills are even deadlier than we thought.

5. We waste food every day, even as millions go hungry. 

6. Tossing textiles.

7. The gold in our trash bins.

Read more on WEForum.

Producers and importers of electronic and electrical products, lighting, and lighting equipment have until Thursday 4 November to sign up to various industry producer responsibility organisations to comply with new EPR regulations pertaining to the management of electronic waste.

The extended producer responsibility regulations, promulgated under the National Environmental Waste Act, will come into effect on 5 November. The new rules stipulate that manufacturers and producers are responsible for the end-of-life management of their products. The regulations are seen as a game-changer in the industry that has seen a growing demand because electronic devices have become a necessity for consumers.

Some of the commonly used products that result in e-waste include small domestic appliances, household portable batteries, lighting, and IT and communication equipment and consumables, such as printer cartridges. via M&G. More insight in the Daily Maverick and Cape Business News.