The Environment is a hot topic at the moment with a news story related to pollution and climate change appearing almost daily. Investigations into the sources, causes and possible solutions to the problem are becoming more widely reported and it is thought that we must act now in order to preserve the planet for future generations. With this focus on development of ways to protect the environment there is more and more pressure on large multi-national companies to lead the way in schemes to reduce waste, pollution and make use of renewable energy sources.

With people becoming more and more dependant on mobile digital devices the importance of batteries has never been greater with over 634 million batteries being sold in the UK alone the question arises, what happens to these batteries once they run out?

There are two main areas which are being looked at in order to tackle the problem:

1. Recycling - Setting up local collection schemes and disposal site services,
2. Use of rechargeable batteries - promoting the environmental and cost benefits of rechargeable batteries.

Uniross, one of the world leaders in rechargeable batteries announced a licensing partnership on May 30th 2006 for a period of 3 years with the WWF. This European partnership will extend across 40 countries and will allow for the creation of a series of initiatives to raise public awareness about the above two topics. Obviously this is something which is happening on a very large scale which is important as such big companies can make big changes, it is however vital that this attitude filters down to all levels of business. For more information see the news item on the WWF website here.

• Approximately 25,000 tonnes of waste is created from household and industrial batteries in the UK each year, however only 1000 tonnes (4%) is recycled.
• In high drain devices such as Digital Cameras, rechargeable batteries can last up to 4 times longer than standard throw away alkaline batteries. You could save up to £650 per year by replacing standard disposable alkaline batteries with high capacity NiMH rechargeables.