ARA rejects deposit on batteries and advocates for greater awareness

Instead of relying on financial incentives, the ARA is focusing on information campaigns. Well-known campaigns include, according to Maier, „Sei kein Zündler" – an initiative against carelessly discarded batteries – as well as „her mit leer", which calls for the correct return of used rechargeable batteries and batteries. Both campaigns are intended to sensitize the population not to dispose of waste batteries in household waste.

High rates for conventional batteries, lag in lithium rechargeable batteries

The fact that conventional batteries are already being collected well in Austria is demonstrated by ARA figures. For conventional batteries, the collection rate is 82 percent, and in some quarters even over 100 percent, because fewer batteries are sold than are brought back. For rechargeable batteries with nickel and cobalt as cathode material, the recycling rate is already 90 to 95 percent.

According to the ARA survey, the problem lies elsewhere: What brings the collection rate down to around half is the low collection volume for lithium-ion rechargeable batteries, at 14 percent. These are installed in mobile phones, tablets, laptops, and power tools such as cordless drills. The average retention period of a rechargeable battery in a household is 6.5 years.

At the same time, the ARA survey from 2019 shows that devices are often used or kept for a very long time before the rechargeable batteries actually reach a collection system. More than half of mobile phones are discarded after 3 to 5 years but then end up in a drawer. Tablets are on average in use for 5.3 years and laptops for 7.4 years. For tools, nickel-cadmium rechargeable batteries last an average of 9.7 years, with a significant proportion lasting 12 to 17 years.

The rechargeable batteries are then to be returned at one of the more than 2,100 collection points in Austria. Consumers can return device batteries there free of charge. The ARA calculates: Because of the long retention period in households, a short-term deposit incentive does not work.

EU bans disposable products with rechargeable batteries from 2027

„Das hat schon bei den Kühlgeräten nicht funktioniert", Maier notes. Until mid-2005, customers received a sticker when purchasing a refrigerator; this model did not gain traction. „Aber das haben die meisten nicht mehr gefunden", says Maier. He draws the conclusion that deposit tokens simply disappear in practice.

However, pressure on the industry is also growing due to new regulations: From January 2027, disposable products with rechargeable batteries, such as e-cigarettes, will be banned across the EU. This is intended to curb the growing volumes of small lithium-ion rechargeable batteries in household waste. The AARA sees this as an important building block but continues to consider deposit solutions unsuitable.

Overall, the ARA wants to continue on its chosen path of awareness-raising. In addition, the collection rate for lithium-ion rechargeable batteries is to be increased through more education about the 2,100 existing collection points. Maier announces that the campaigns will be further expanded to meet the EU-wide collection requirements by 2030.

At the same time, the ARA emphasizes that consumers themselves can make the biggest difference: Anyone who specifically brings old mobile phones, laptops, or tool rechargeable batteries to a collection point increases the recycling rate even without a new deposit system.