Christmas Day could see over 20 million waste batteries generated by Irish Households
December 11, 2015
ALDI and WEEE IRELAND team up to reveal a very special Christmas wish for LauraLynn Ireland’s Children’s Hospice.
- 200 million portable batteries are powering homes and appliances around Ireland
- 20 million of those are waste batteries which is at least 12 batteries per household at any one time
- WEEE want them recycled! Each battery collected goes towards a monetary donation to LauraLynn, Ireland’s Children’s Hospice. If Ireland hits the EU Target in 2016 the charity will have received a total of €250,000 since 2012
- Get your own WEEE Ireland “My Battery Box” at participating Aldi Ireland stores/ schools/ Civic Amenity Sites and get collecting for charity!
- Be positive! Keep recycling your waste batteries in 2016 and Ireland will reach the EU Target of 45% takeback
PRESS RELEASE DUBLIN: DECEMBER 9TH 2015
As the shopping frenzy for the ultimate Christmas toy or gadget gets underway, WEEE Ireland are asking people to be mindful of their waste batteries in the coming weeks. New figures released by WEEE Ireland today have revealed that over 20 million waste batteries are expected to be found lying around Irish homes by Christmas Day.
In a bid to make battery recycling more achievable and easy to do at home, WEEE Ireland are proud to announce that they have teamed up with Aldi Ireland stores for the launch of their “My Battery Box” campaign. Members of the public will be able to obtain their own “My Battery Box” from their local Aldi store from today December 9th. Once full of waste batteries, the “My Battery Box” can be brought back to your local school, retailer or Civic Amenity Site. The batteries will then be collected by a member of the WEEE Ireland team and recycled responsibly.
Speaking at the launch of the new My Battery Box Campaign, WEEE Ireland CEO Leo Donovan said,” This Christmas we want people to be mindful of doing their bit for the environment and also a charity that is very near to our heart – LauraLynn, Ireland’s Children’s Hospice. As Christmas is a time for reflecting and giving, recycling waste batteries into your “My Battery Box” will give people the chance to give back to this charity, for free. We are delighted to partner with Aldi Ireland as one of the main retail partners for this campaign and look forward to seeing our blue battery boxes popping up in their stores this festive season.”
Finbar McCarthy, Group Buying Director, Aldi Ireland, said “Aldi is delighted to come on board as the lead retail partner for this fantastic initiative. Recycling is something we take very seriously and we hope to be able to help all our customers do the same over the Christmas period, while also supporting such a worthy cause as LauraLynn Ireland’s, Children’s Hospice. The little blue battery boxes are available at each of our 122 stores across the country and I would encourage all our customers to take one home and get involved this Christmas.”
Special ambassador Bosco said ”I am delighted to leave my box once again this Christmas to get on the road to spread the importance of recycling batteries, not just for our environment but for the children in LauraLynn, Ireland’s Children’s Hospice. All the children there are my friends and I really hope Ireland can pull together over Christmas and collect waste batteries in the new blue battery boxes. Every battery counts for a donation towards this amazing charity. So don’t forget to pick up your own blue battery box now at Aldi.”
TOP TIPS FOR RECYCLING BATTERIES THIS CHRISTMAS:
- Do use rechargeable batteries where possible and consider putting a portable battery charging kit on your green Christmas shopping list
- Do a festive spring clean before you put up your Christmas decorations and begin the search for waste batteries in your home
- Pop into you local Aldi store to pick up your own personal “My Battery Box”
- Pop all your waste batteries into the blue battery box and drop back to your local retailer / school/ Civic Amenity Site once full
For more information on WEEE Ireland then log on to www.weeeireland.ie
For an interview with a WEEE Ireland representative or Bosco or further information please contact:
Ends
For further information please contact:
Grace O’Reilly
Insight Consultants
01 2939977 / 086 1968831
grace@insightconsultants.ie
Notes to Editors:
About LauraLynn- Ireland’s Children’s Hospice
LauraLynn is Ireland’s first and only children’s hospice. Since opening in September 2011, families across Ireland now have access to respite, home support and end-of-life care for children with highly medically dependent conditions. LauraLynn is a specially created unit located in the grounds of the Children’s Sunshine Home, Leopardstown, Dublin.
Every year there are approximately 320 child deaths and more than 3,800 children living with life limiting or threatening conditions in Ireland. The monies required to build LauraLynn was 100% generated through fundraising. It cost €5.5 million to build and fit-out the hospice and now costs over €3 million to operate each year. To date, LauraLynn has received no direct state funding for its hospice services.
For further information please visit lauralynn.ie
About battery recycling
The WEEE Ireland scheme operates on behalf of Producers of batteries and electrical appliances to encourage people at home and in work to manage their electrical and battery waste responsibly. WEEE Ireland encourages people to use rechargeable batteries where possible and to use the WEEE Ireland small battery box or other suitable container at home to collect spent batteries for recycling. Waste batteries can then be deposited in larger WEEE Ireland blue boxes at collection points around the country. They are sorted at WEEE facilities in Ireland and safely transported to dedicated European battery recycling plants. Recycling batteries diverts them from landfill and ensures any heavy metals and chemicals they contain are managed in an environmentally responsible way.
Recycling also saves on natural resources as many of the component parts of batteries can be used again in manufacturing. For more information please log on to weeeireland.ie, or join the campaign on facebook.com/weeeireland
About WEEE Ireland
WEEE Ireland (Waste, Electrical and Electronic Equipment) is a not for profit organisation, founded by producers of electrical and electronic appliances in order to help them comply with the legal obligations imposed by the WEEE Directive 2002/96/EC. WEEE Ireland manages the collection for recycling of household WEEE, lighting equipment and batteries from authorised collection points, on behalf of its Producer members.