Batteries in residual waste: regular fires
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Lithium-ion batteries in residual waste are increasingly causing fires in the Salzburg waste disposal plant (SAB) in Bergheim-Siggerwiesen (Flachgau). When treating or chopping the residual waste, the batteries regularly catch fire.
There is now a fire alarm once or twice a week in the Siggerwiesen waste disposal plant due to burning batteries. Mobile phones or other small electronic devices that are disposed of in the residual waste usually trigger these fires.
When chopping or other processes, they start to burn, says SAB Managing Director Josef Weilhartner: “It can be ignited by different things – for example just because the wheel loader pushes different piles together and these products or are exposed to pressure. Then a discharge can take place and then unfortunately it can happen that it starts to burn relatively quickly.”
Rapid intervention required
The damage was “usually limited”, adds Weilhartner – mainly thanks to the company’s own fire protection team: “But if the fire is not discovered and localized quickly enough, serious damage can of course occur.”
Batteries in more and more objects – such as backpacks
The problem is always built in – also because batteries are built into more and more objects where you would not actually expect them. Weilhartner knows an example from the recent past: “We had around 100 backpacks that we disposed of – they were intended as promotional gifts and were obviously not so well received. And these backpacks had built-in rechargeable batteries in the straps, so that they could charge cell phones, for example. And then it happened that a fire broke out during processing.”
And due to this “tricky” installation of such batteries, it is often not that easy to dispose of them properly.
Appeal for separate disposal
the SAB managing director appeals to remove lithium-ion batteries from devices as much as possible and still dispose of them separately at recycling centers. Fireproof metal containers are usually available for collection there.