Hey Mr. Green,

How can I recycle small batteries? —Judith, in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina

If you’re recycling rechargeable batteries--along with the cell phones that contain zillions of them--find the location nearest you at Call to Recycle. It lists thousands of places, even those in the middle of nowhere, like my hometown. I tested the site, and it turned up 6 recycling spots within 25 miles of my dwindling village! One was only 3.5 miles away, but on the other side of the Mississippi River, meaning that unless you used a boat you’d have to drive up 25 miles to the nearest bridge, cross the river, and drive another 25 miles downriver, making the real-world distance 50 miles. (Luckily there were other options.)

The reason for recycling rechargeable batteries is quite simple: They contain toxic heavy metals such as cadmium, mercury, and lithium. That’s why it’s illegal to throw them away in many states. Regardless, our recycling record is shameful. Of about 150 million cell phones disposed of each year in the United States, only 11 percent are recycled, compared to 30 percent of all electronic waste, according to the most recent data from the Electronics Take Back Coalition. So we’re still wasting a staggering amount of toxic but valuable resources.

Recycling single-use batteries is tougher, because most places do not consider them a serious enough source of pollution to require recycling, and recommend that they be put in the regular trash. But there are mail-in recycling programs for both types of batteries, single use and rechargable, at the following sites:

Battery Solutions

The Big Green Box

Retrieve Technologies

Kinsbursky Brothers

If none of these options works for you, then contact your local household hazardous waste facility to find out how to send your batteries to a happier, safer, and more useful afterlife.