February may be known for Valentine’s Day, but there’s another important holiday this month. Forget candy hearts and roses — show your love for the environment by celebrating National Battery Day on Feb. 18.
Wondering just how to do that? Recycling a battery is a good start! And when there are prizes at stake, all
the better. Call2Recycle, a nonprofit rechargeable battery and cellphone collection program, is hosting a contest throughout the month of February. For the chance to win a $250 gift card, just post a picture of yourself recycling a used household battery.
The steps are easy:
- Visit one of Call2Recycle’s retail partners’ locations — including Best Buy, Lowe’s, Radio Shack, Sears, Staples, and The Home Depot — to drop off your used batteries for recycling, or find another recycling location near you through their collection site locator.
- Take a picture of yourself recycling a battery at one of the collection sites.
- Submit your photo through Twitter and Facebook using the hashtag #NBD2016Recycle2Win, or post it here, anytime between now and Feb. 29. Remember to tag @Call2Recycle and the collection site to thank them for providing the free recycling service.
Eight lucky U.S. recyclers (plus eight Canadian recyclers) will win $250 to add to their satisfaction of having properly disposed of their batteries. For more details, visit call2recycle.org/nationalbatteryday.
Why is battery recycling important? Those same heavy metal elements that allow a battery to be recharged over and over are potentially hazardous to the environment unless recycled correctly. Metals like cadmium, cobalt and lead can be used to make new batteries, while nickel goes into stainless steel products. Even if you only have one battery to recycle, your contribution matters — since 1994, Call2Recycle has diverted well over 100 million pounds from landfills, or the equivalent of 33,000 compact vehicles.
That fact may not be as cute as cupid, but it gets our earth-loving hearts racing.
For more information about rechargeable battery recycling, check out our Recycling Guide on the topic.
Editor’s Note: Earth911 partners with many industries, manufacturers and organizations to support its Recycling Directory, the largest in the nation, which is provided to consumers at no cost. Call2Recycle is one of these partners.
Feature image courtesy of Flickr.com/DeclanTM