Vermont officials are reminding folks to dispose of household batteries responsibly now that it’s illegal to dump them in the trash.

Many kinds of batteries had already been illegal to throw out for years and as of Monday, single-use and rechargeable batteries joined that list.

Small batteries in trash and recycling can ignite and pose a danger to workers. The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation’s Josh Kelly says that if they find batteries, they would separate them and try to track where they came from to enforce the law.

Instead, he says batteries can be recycled into -- if you can believe it -- fertilizer and sunscreen. “Getting batteries out of the waste stream prevents more of the hazardous and dangerous for the environment and for people, and especially for waste and recycling workers. It’s critical that people take the steps to recycle responsibly and bring batteries to a drop-off location,” Kelly said.

Courtesy : wcax.com