New nationwide ebike battery recycling program

Fast Company: “…E-bike battery recycling programs are common in Europe, where e-bike use has been more popular, but in the U.S., the infrastructure is lacking. In 2022, though, that will change, with the launch of an industry-wide electric bicycle battery recycling program, a joint effort from PeopleForBikes, a bicycle trade association and advocacy organization, and Call2Recycle, a battery recycling nonprofit—and one both organizations say is a first for uniting a transportation sector under one battery recycling solution. Analysts estimate that more than 12 million electric bikes will be sold in the U.S. this decade. That’s a good thing for reducing carbon emissions—a study conducted in Portland found that increasing e-bike use there by 15% could reduce total transportation CO2 emissions by 12%—but could pose some other concerns. E-bike batteries last between three and seven years on average, and they are often treated as hazardous waste, making them hard to dispose of. Producing the batteries also requires mining raw materials like nickel, cobalt, and lithium, which comes with environmental and labor concerns…”