Worldwide, only 17 percent of electronic waste and less than 5 percent of devices containing lithium ion batteries are recycled, even though their chemical elements offer a “cycle of nearly infinite recyclability,” according to Redwood Materials.
Since early 2022, more than a dozen Rotary clubs across the United States have collaborated with the Nevada-based battery recycler to host collection drives, yielding tens of thousands of pounds of cell phones, laptops, power drills, electric toothbrushes, and more. “This is a turnkey project,” says Clari Nolet of the Rotary Club of Los Altos, California, a board member of the Environmental Sustainability Rotary Action Group. “You clean out your junk drawer, address U.S. supply chain security and environmental issues, and assist in the adoption of electric cars.”