WEEE fires caused by batteries ‘increasing’

The number of fires in the waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) management chain caused by damaged batteries is increasing, according to a report prepared by EuRic and the WEEE Forum.

Published today and titled Characterisation of fires caused by batteries in WEEE, the report suggests that within the WEEE management chain there is a high prevalence of frequent yet small fires, with little or no severity.

Mixed WEEE is thought to be the waste stream most affected by battery fires

Mixed WEEE is thought to be the most affected waste stream, and damaged batteries considered responsible for those fires in most cases.

Emmanuel Katrakis is secretary general of EuRIC, a confederation of national and European recycling associations representing  the European recycling industries. He said: “Battery fires are one of the most important issue impacting recyclers currently.

“This fact-based report confirms that fires occur at every stage of the collection and treatment of WEEE, but we see a higher prevalence during treatment and at the logistics and pre-treatment stages during storage.”

The report is a summary of responses from a survey undertaken by 109 companies across Europe. It was produced with the contribution of experts from various organisations including EERA, EUCOBAT, Municipal Waste Europe and the WEEELABEX Organisation.

The report says the expected increase in the number of lithium ion batteries put on the market reinforces the need to implement effective prevention and mitigation measures.

Sector-led guidance was drafted to assist waste management companies in handling lithium ion batteries to prevent fires at waste sites in April 2019

Read the full story at Letsrecycle.com https://www.letsrecycle.com/news/latest-news/weee-fires-caused-by-batteries-increasing/

Read the full report 'Characterisation of fires caused by batteries in WEEE' here https://1ur6751k3lsj3droh41tcsra-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/26.05.2020-Report-Characterisation-of-fires-caused-by-batteries-in-WEEE.pdf