Take a quick look around the room you’re sitting in right now. How many things in it are battery operated? Your cell phone? Your laptop? The kids’ toys that are lying around? The recent upsurge of battery operated items has led to an astounding increase in the purchase of batteries. According to treehugger.com, Americans purchase around 5 billion batteries each year and leave behind a minimum of 146,000 tons of battery waste, annually. I love quoting figures because that really puts things into perspective. Can you imagine having to dispose of 5 billion batteries each year? And that’s only in America!
Happily enough, there are some alternatives that one can use, maybe not for everything we need in our daily lives (and note, I do use the word ‘need’ because certain things have unfortunately become a necessity), but for at least some of them.
Solar powered items: Think sun energy! Solar powered toys may be a bit pricey, but they will provide your little ones with hours of battery free fun. Apart from the traditional cars and trucks, look for science kits that educate and entertain. Nothing like your kids getting a head start in the field of energy saving, non-polluting devices.
Rechargeable: If you do need batteries, how about switching to rechargeable ones? They may be more expensive to purchase, but they do work out to be cheaper in the long run. You can also pick up a solar powered rechargeable battery- charger. I didn’t even know they exist till I came across them at sundancesolar.com, but they seem like a great buy!
Manual cranking: Give your arm a bit of a workout by opting for manual cranking devices. I’ve just picked up a radio-flashlight, which works by cranking up the handle. True, this is not the most ideal item for daily usage, but it works well in my emergency pack. And the best part is that I need never worry about running out of batteries or worse still, having to look for some during an emergency.
Good old fashioned play: If your child does receive a battery operated toy, try the following: Let the batteries die out (or better yet, don’t put them in), hide the remote device and see if your kid doesn’t have fun just pushing it around. While I’m all for kids enjoying battery operated devices, which can be fun and lets them develop a healthy sense of marvel and amazement, I do believe that if the battery dies, it doesn’t have to be replaced. Let your child use his/her imagination and the doll will talk, the truck will zoom and the plane will fly, all faster and better than ever before.
And finally, a quick note on recycling your batteries. Unfortunately, most non-rechargeable batteries are not recycled, but rechargeable batteries are! Contact your local municipality to find out if they accept batteries. Otherwise, visit sites like www.rbrc.org to find a center which accepts recyclable batteries and cell phones batteries.
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