In 2023, Ukrainians sent over 200 tons of batteries for safe disposal by Promo Service and Batteries Give Up!, or about 7% of total imports of about 2,800 tons.
Taking into account other organizations that collect batteries and temporarily store them in their warehouses before recycling, this figure reaches 10%, Promo Service Executive Director Tetiana Markina told EcoPolitic.
She emphasized that the 10% recycling rate is quite high for Ukraine, which currently has no legal regulations governing the collection of such waste.
"This shows that Ukrainians are quite aware of this type of waste and the possibility of further increasing the volume of collection through educational activities and providing information on why it is important to bring batteries for recycling," said Markina.
She added that batteries have different chemical compositions and are classified into at least 7 types of waste. In addition, there is no such thing as a "standard battery", and therefore the environmental damage from different batteries is different.
Earlier, EcoPolitic wrote, that in 2021, Ukrainians disposed of more than 120,000 tons of used batteries, that is, 3% of last year's imports.
