The Rise of Disposable Vapes in Landfill

The Rising Trend of Disposable Vapes and Their Impact on the Environment

Disposable vapes are a worldwide phenomenon for good reasons but also for bad. Disposable vapes are a convenient way of switching to a healthier alternative to smoking cigarettes, but this convenience comes at a price. With a standard cost of £4-£6 per single use, disposable, they are not cost effective compared to traditional refillable, rechargeable vapes.  According to The Daily Mail, more than seven million single use vapes are bought every week. This results in many disposables ending up littered in roads, public paths and in general waste bins rather than being taken to dedicated battery recycling that you normally see in supermarkets etc.

The biggest concern regarding disposable vapes is that they are ending up in general waste and littered around is that these devices contain Lithium. Lithium is a soft, silvery-white, metal that heads group 1, the alkali metals group, of the periodic table of the elements. It reacts vigorously with water. Even in smaller quantities that are contained in disposable vapes, it's enough to cause a potential risk if not disposed of properly as the lithium-ion batteries can start fires when crushed, when driven over or squashed in the back of a waste collection vehicle. These types of batteries explode and catch fire aggressively quick, so taking the proper precautions when disposing of your disposable is an upmost importance.

In a blog posted on the Insurance broker website, Zurich stated “Freedom of Information data obtained by the insurer shows bin lorry blazes have surged 62% in two years while house fires sparked by vapes have soared 108%”  A joint investigation by The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, Sky News and The Daily Telegraph suggests that two disposables are being thrown away every second in the UK, over a year, this is enough Lithium to make roughly 1200 electric car batteries.

Aside from Lithium other materials used to produce single-use vapes are also a hazard to our environment as stated by Greenpeace “The materials used in disposable vapes make them a potential hazard to humans, wildlife and the environment when they’re thrown away. Lithium batteries are highly flammable and have been causing dangerous fires in bin lorries and waste processing centres. Then there’s the pollution from disposable vapes. If they’re littered or in landfill, there’s a risk of harmful chemicals like battery acid and nicotine leaking into the environment.”

Final Thoughts

Our take home from all this is please dispose of your single use vapes in the proper manner or preferably make a change to a refillable, rechargeable vape as these will last you significantly longer overall and will drastically reduce the amount of disposable vapes that end up in Landfill or littered around.  If you have any questions or queries regarding making the change to a refillable, rechargeable vape, please head into either our Sedgley or Wolverhampton stores and a member of staff will be more than happy to assist you. 

You can also submit your questions to info@rhythmnvape.co.uk.