Cheongsong County Launches Intensive Used Battery Collection Campaign

Aiming for Resource Recycling and Environmental Protection

Cheongsong County in North Gyeongsang Province will conduct an "Intensive Used Battery Collection Campaign" for about two months from October 2 to November, aiming to prevent environmental pollution and promote the recycling of metal resources.

The goal of this campaign is to collect used batteries discarded at home separately, thereby reducing environmental pollution caused by hazardous substances and recovering the metal resources contained in used batteries for recycling.

To this end, elementary, middle, and high schools in the area will send home letters to encourage the collection of used batteries at home, and the county office will directly collect the used batteries gathered by each school.

Residents living in apartment complexes or detached houses can dispose of used batteries in dedicated collection boxes or exchange them for new batteries at the nearest town or township office.

The exchange standard allows residents to receive one set of new batteries (2 AA or AAA size) for every 10 used batteries (regardless of type), and in the case of silver oxide batteries, one set of new batteries for every 20 collected.

Used batteries contain hazardous substances such as mercury, nickel, zinc, and cadmium. If disposed of with regular waste, these substances can cause air, soil, and water pollution and may harm human health, so they must be separated for proper disposal.

The collected used batteries will be processed and reproduced into products such as silver oxide batteries, nickel-cadmium batteries, nickel-metal hydride batteries, lithium primary batteries, lithium-ion/polymer batteries, and manganese/alkaline batteries.

County Governor Yoon Kyunghee said, "We encourage you to collect unused batteries at home and exchange them for new ones, and to participate in this eco-friendly initiative."