Councillor Column Councillor Pat Lynch 18 November

Ever tossed an old gadget in the bin without thinking twice? Maybe a broken Bluetooth speaker, a vape, or that electric toothbrush that gave up the ghost? Inside those everyday items are batteries that can cause serious fires if they end up in your household rubbish.

Across Australia, the waste and recycling industry is battling up to 12,000 fires every year because of batteries thrown in the wrong place.

That’s not just a statistic — it’s a real risk to our waste workers, our trucks, and even community safety.

Loose batteries are easy to deal with. You can drop them off at Council buildings and waste facilities, including the Lannercost Office and both libraries, as well as at Woolworths, Coles, and Canegrowers Mitre 10. But the real challenge is the batteries you can’t see — the ones built into your gadgets.

These are called embedded batteries, and they’re in things we all use every day like Bluetooth speakers, e-scooters, cordless vacuums, flashing toys, smartwatches, and even electric toothbrushes.

You can’t just pop them out, and if they go in the bin, they can spark a fire.

To tackle this, Hinchinbrook Shire Council is working with our regional partners through the North Queensland Regional Organisation of Councils (NQROC) to make it easier for you to do the right thing.

Together, we’re launching an Embedded Battery Amnesty Weekend in the new year.

It’s your chance to bring those tricky items in for free and know they’ll be recycled safely. No need to pull the battery out; just bring the whole device. Our industry partner will handle the rest.

Keep an eye out for our communications rolling out soon — we’d love everyone to get involved! We’re excited to be part of this campaign, proudly funded by the Queensland Government’s Local Government Battery Collection Program and delivered in partnership with NQROC.

This is all about making things easy for everyone. Most of us have old gadgets tucked away in a drawer or out in the shed. Instead of tossing them in the bin, bring them in. By doing this, you’re helping protect our community, our waste workers, and our infrastructure from dangerous fires.