‘Skip the bin, turn [them] in’

Firefighters and advocates are alarmed after an alarming increase in fires in dumpsters, garbage trucks and waste collection facilities. Experts blamed this increase on the so-called “vaping effect,” which occurs when lithium-ion batteries from improperly disposed vaping devices catch fire. According to E-Scrap News.

What’s going on?

There were 56 publicly reported fires at waste collection and recycling facilities in the U.S. and Canada in July, Fire Rover’s Ryan Fogelman wrote in an article published in August. Waste360. That was the largest number in a month since Fogelman began tracking such fires in 2016.

Fogelman’s data also showed that 2024 and 2025 have the highest number of fires recorded at waste disposal sites.

“To put this in perspective, we suppressed more fires in Fire Rover in 2025 than in previous years,” Fogelman wrote to Waste360. “We are currently working to suppress the number of incidents at customer sites worldwide, from 268 in 2024 to more than 400 in 2025.”

The biggest reason for this increase in waste facility fires has been the improper disposal of e-cigarette products. According to E-Scrap News.

“I coined the term ‘vape effect’ to describe the increasing number of lithium-ion batteries entering nearly all waste and recycling facilities around the world,” Fogelman wrote in a September article. Published by Waste360. “The reality is that the number of disposable e-cigarettes is estimated to continue to rise, with adults over the age of 21 switching from traditional cigarettes to e-cigarettes, reaching 1.2 billion disposable e-cigarettes each year.”

The United States and Canada aren’t the only ones seeing a significant increase in these types of fires. In the UK, the number of fires caused by lithium-ion batteries in the waste disposal system has increased by 70% in a single year to more than 1,200. By Material Focusa non-profit organization.

Why are ‘vape effect’ fires important?

Fires caused by improperly disposed of e-cigarette products pose a significant threat to the safety of waste disposal workers and others. They also intervene in recycling and garbage collection efforts.

Additionally, fires are just one of the many risks posed by discarded electronic cigarettes to human health and the environment. 2023 review All of the available scientific literature has found that vaping devices contain heavy metals such as mercury and lead, as well as fire retardant chemicals, all of which can leach into the soil and water supply when e-cigarettes are not disposed of properly.

What’s being done about ‘vape effect’ fires?

To prevent fires caused by electronic cigarettes and other products containing lithium-ion batteries, devices containing batteries must be properly disposed of in specialized facilities. Officials hope that by spreading public awareness and expanding the availability of battery drop-off sites, they can reduce the number of e-cigarette devices ending up in the trash or recycling systems designed for other materials.

Some countries have gone further. For example, Malaysia and Singapore have taken steps to outright ban vaping products. UK banned They are all disposable electronic cigarettes.

in the USA, National Waste and Recycling Association Launched the Battery Safety Now campaign, which uses the slogan “Skip the Trash, Throw Your Batteries In” to help raise awareness and encourage the disposal of e-cigarettes and other battery-containing devices at appropriate drop-off locations.

“Battery fires are happening more frequently,” Battery Safety Now warns website. “They have destroyed homes, burned garbage trucks and recycling centers, and tragically claimed lives. When a facility goes up in flames, garbage and recycling services can be shut down for weeks, even months.”

The website continued: “The good news? Battery fires are easy to prevent.”

As an increasing number of stores selling e-cigarette products also have e-cigarette waste bins, e-cigarette users have no excuse not to dispose of their used e-cigarettes safely.

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