Call2Recycle is increasing its sorting capacity for its battery recycling program thanks to an operational agreement it signed with Wistron GreenTech, a company that operates an electronic materials recycling facility in McKinney, Texas.
The 209,000 square foot, state-of-the-art processing center is expected to facilitate the recycling of rechargeable batteries and cellphones collected from the western half of the country, estimated to be approximately 20 percent of the batteries Call2Recycle collects in the US. In 2012, Call2Recycle diverted 10 million pounds of used batteries from the waste stream.
Wistron GreenTech is the second sorting facility Call2Recycle uses in the US. The other is located outside Pittsburgh. Call2Recycle, which claims to be the first and largest battery stewardship program in North America, says the agreement will help Call2Recycle reduce costs and environmental impact. Steve O’Brien, managing director of operations for Call2Recycle, says the agreement will also help Call2Recycle grow as the volume of rechargable batteries being collected for recycling increases.
Founded in 1994, Call2Recycle is a non-profit organization that collects and recycles rechargeable batteries at no cost for municipalities, businesses and consumers. Since 1996, Call2Recycle has diverted over 75 million pounds of batteries and cellphones from the solid waste stream and established 30,000 collection sites throughout the US and Canada. It is the first program of its kind to receive the Responsible Recycling Practices Standard (R2) certification. Call2Recycle is funded by product manufacturers across the globe that are committed to environmentally-sound recycling of rechargeable batteries and cellphones. These manufacturers place the Call2Recycle recycling seal on their rechargeable products and batteries, informing users that they are recyclable.