To increase its waste diversion and lower its carbon footprint, the Municipality of Grey Highlands has expanded its network of recycling points to recycle used household batteries from the public.  

Convenient drop-off buckets have been installed at all arenas and libraries in Grey Highlands.

This offers each community a safe and easy way to dispose of and recycle household batteries in addition to the municipality’s waste and diversion sites.

Items accepted for recycling include rechargeable and single-use batteries weighing five kilograms or less each.  

All battery types in Ontario require proper end-of-life management, meaning they must be recycled at a municipal hazardous waste depot, through an approved service provider, or a retail take-back program.  

In 2019, Raw Materials Company, with tremendous support from its dedicated collection network, recycled 50 per cent of all the available primary batteries sold in Ontario.  

The batteries collected from the Grey Highlands locations will be processed at RMC’s Port Colborne facility using North America's most environmentally-responsible technology. Battery components are crushed and separated into various metals, minerals, plastic, and paper. Each battery is 100 per cent recovered and reused; no materials enter the landfill.  

Recycling batteries in Ontario hasn’t always been convenient. In 2009, less than 5 per cent of  all single-use batteries were recycled. In 2019, Ontario recycled 50 per cent of all the available single-use batteries sold in the province.

In Grey Highlands 675 kilograms of batteries were diverted from landfills in 2022.

“We hope to see that number increase with these  added locations throughout the municipality,” said Shawn Moyer, Director of  Environmental Services for Grey Highlands. 

Batteries should never be tossed into the garbage. In Ontario all battery types are designated as either hazardous or special waste requiring proper end-of-life management.