Rechargeable Batteries

My husband has started getting into environmentalism in his own way, mostly so far through technology. He recently bought us a AA & AAA Sustainability Kit from Pale Blue, aka, rechargeable batteries. He uses plenty of batteries in his Xbox controller, remote controls, and all sorts of little gadgets around the house. All my talk about making environmentally friendly choices for our home spurred him to look into rechargeable batteries. 

When it comes to the simple environmental impact of batteries, rechargeable batteries are the way to go. Every year Americans throw away somewhere around 3 billion batteries, about 250 million tons worth. This means toxic chemicals are being thrown into landfills on a regular basis and leeching into the soil. Unfortunately, no matter what kind of batteries we use, disposable, rechargeable, or other, there are heavy metals or other toxic chemicals in all of them. The best way to use rechargeable batteries is to use them for their entire lifespan. They will eventually need to be recycled anyway, but this cuts down on mining, production, and waste of normal batteries. 

In terms of home sustainability, rechargeable batteries are cost effective. Depending on how many batteries you use per year, rechargeable batteries will pay for themselves anywhere from 2-5 years of use. As with many environmentally friendly changes, the up-front cost is higher, with buying the batteries and the charger, but then the only cost for their lifetime is the electricity used to charge them. 

Plenty of name-brand battery makers have lines of rechargeable batteries. Amazon has gotten in the game as well. The company we bought from, Pale Blue, also does D and 9volt batteries. They give back through partnerships, have recyclable packaging, and allow you to buy carbon offsets when purchasing the batteries. 

While the AA and AAA's are a good start, I have realized we use a lot of CR2032 batteries. I'll have to put that bug in my husband's ear and see if he can find some good rechargeable CR2032s we can purchase. Perhaps you can start this journey by doing a battery audit and seeing how many you are regularly using and how often you change them. "More Power!" doesn't have to mean being bad for the environment.