Fires in collection vehicles and at waste facilities can occur and are most frequently caused by lithium batteries, such as in cellphones and other rechargeable devices, being placed out for collection with regular residential garbage or recycling. The battery becomes more vulnerable to fire during hauling and processing. Fires caused by improper disposal of hazardous items pose a critical safety risk to the collection workers, landfill staff, firefighters and the public.
Please practice safe disposal methods for batteries and other flammable, explosive and hazardous materials. These items require special handling and should never be placed in your regular curbside garbage or recycling carts. If you are unsure where to dispose of batteries, cell phones and other hazardous items, please use the RDN’s What Goes Where waste wizard to find the nearest drop-off location at rdn.bc.ca/what-goes-where.
Together, we can ensure the safety of our community, workers and the environment.