When Nihal Tammana was just 10 years old, he heard a news report about a lithium-ion battery exploding at a waste disposal plant—and when he learned about the environmental risks of batteries being left in landfills, he decided to do something.
Tammana started the nonprofit, Recycle My Battery, and now, at 15 years old, he has already recycled over 625,000 batteries—and placed over 1,000 battery bins in schools, libraries, and businesses to make recycling easier.
Anyone can now visit RecycleMyBattery.org for instructions on how to make their schools and businesses battery recycling heroes.
The teen from Monroe, New Jersey, has expanded his impact beyond the United States, too. Tammana’s story and mission were recently featured in a German educational textbook, integrating battery recycling advocacy into school curriculums.
He is also teaming up with B-cycle, Australia’s largest battery recycling company, so the country can adopt his initiative to place battery bins in schools nationwide.
Lately, Nihal is working on a Residual Charge Project, developing a prototype (that was confirmed by a University of Waterloo expert) to extract leftover energy from used batteries that could power the battery recycling plants.
Engaging its 1,000 youth volunteers globally, Recycle My Battery is educating the public about the destructive effects of throwing batteries in with your trash. The nonprofit researched the effects of a normal alkaline battery, such as Duracell, on soil quality. The degrading battery dramatically increased salt levels, rendering the soil toxic, with an alarming pH of 13.01—far beyond the range suitable for any vegetation.
With its goal of recycling 1 million batteries by the end of the year through initiatives like The Battery Challenge, which gamifies school participation, Tammana invites communities and organizations to join the effort. From setting up battery bins to spreading awareness, every action contributes to a cleaner, healthier planet.
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“If I can make the Earth a better place to live, you can…. If you can, we all can,” said Tammana.
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Once the batteries are collected,where do they go to get recycled?
There are plants that recycle batteries. Some California cities require that you put old batteries in a bag outside the trash bins so they can be recycled specifically. Gotta love Calif for being so forward thinking!