After two garbage trucks caught fire in separate incidents involving lithium-ion batteries that were improperly disposed of, officials in the U.K. sought to spread the word that battery-containing devices cannot be thrown away with normal trash or in regular recycling bins, the BBC reported. 

What's happening?

Both fires took place in the same region of England, located roughly 130 miles northeast of London. The fires highlighted the dangers of improperly disposing of lithium-ion batteries, which are used in a variety of electronic devices from vapes to smartphones, as well as in electric vehicles and renewable-energy power plants. 

"Nationally there has been a concerning increase in fires in bin lorries and at recycling plants, and we need the public's help to prevent further incidents," said Jeremy Owenson, a councillor for the Malvern Hills District Council, using the British term for garbage trucks, per the BBC.

"A small electrical item can start a fire that could endanger lives and halt essential waste services, as well as rendering a whole load of recycling unable to be re-processed, as the only way to halt these types of fires is to eject the entire load on to the road and extinguish the fire," he continued.  

While battery-carrying devices made by major manufacturers are generally very safe to use and charge, the number of fires sparked by lithium-ion batteries in the waste disposal system have skyrocketed in recent years, coinciding with the growing popularity of so-called "disposable" single-use vaping devices. According to Material Focus, a nonprofit, in 2023, there were over 1,200 such fires in the U.K. alone, an increase of 71% over the year prior. 

Surely in part for this reason, the U.K. banned single-use vapes with a measure that took effect on June 1, though many people still have the vapes or are purchasing them illegally. 

"Fires involving waste have always been challenging but lithium-ion batteries add significantly to this by creating unknown and unpredictable risks," said Mark Andrews of the National Fire Chiefs Council, per Material Focus. "These fires can be explosive and spread rapidly with the risk of reignition and toxic gases."

Why are lithium-ion battery fires important?

As the amount of electrical devices containing lithium-ion batteries has grown drastically in recent years, so has the number of fires they have caused — though it's worth noting that devices made by reputable and licensed major companies are made with various safety redundancies and are not big risks for random fires through regular use or charging. Those types of fires are almost always from off-brand devices or third-party replacement batteries and sometimes even counterfeit products.    

In 2023, people threw away 1.6 billion lithium-ion batteries or battery-containing devices, which averages out to 3,000 every second, according to Material Focus. 

With PennEnvironment Research & Policy finding that Americans throw out 500,000 vapes every single day, vaping devices account for a large proportion of these discarded batteries.

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In addition to posing a risk of fire that puts waste-disposal workers and firefighters in danger, batteries that are improperly disposed of are a threat to public health and the environment. Lithium-ion batteries contain a number of different heavy metals and dangerous chemicals. When left in a landfill, these harmful substances can leach out, contaminating soil and water, according to a 2024 study. 

On the other hand, when lithium-ion batteries are properly recycled, a large percentage of the materials inside can be reused, including lithium, nickel, cobalt, copper, and aluminium, reducing the need to mine for new materials, a 2025 study published in Nature Communications found. 

The study's authors concluded that recycling lithium-ion batteries resulted in 58% to 81% less heat-trapping pollution while using 72% to 88% less water and 77% to 89% less energy as compared to creating batteries out of raw materials. 

What's being done about lithium-ion battery fires?

With lithium-ion batteries being used to power everything from smartphones to vapes to electric vehicles, as well as providing storage at renewable-energy power plants, they are not likely to go anywhere any time soon.

However, a growing number of countries have begun to ban single-use vapes, which also pose significant health risks to those who use them, especially young people and pregnant women, per the CDC. 

The best way to help prevent fires and environmental degradation from lithium-ion batteries is to make sure they are properly disposed of. This involves taking them to an appropriate e-recycling center rather than simply dropping them in the trash can or recycling bin. The waste-disposal companies in your area will have information on where and when to drop off your used lithium-ion batteries and battery-containing devices. 

"Fires involving the incorrect disposal of lithium-ion batteries are a disaster waiting to happen," warned Phil Clark of the National Fire Chiefs Council, as quoted by Material Focus.

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