New Design
  1. Enable New Design

Australia's daily fire crisis: Why your old mobile phone battery could cost taxpayers $150,000

News & Politics

Australia's daily fire crisis: Why your old mobile phone battery could cost taxpayers $150,000

1759114057322.png Australia's daily fire crisis: Why your old mobile phone battery could cost taxpayers $150,000
Every single day, about 30 garbage trucks and waste facilities across Australia burst into flames. Credit: Source: Cairns Regional Council

Every single day, about 30 garbage trucks and waste facilities across Australia burst into flames. That's more than 10,000 fires each year, and the culprit might surprise you—it's often something as seemingly harmless as the old mobile phone battery sitting in your junk drawer.



The recent incident in Cairns, where a small barbecue sparked a garbage truck fire and prompted warnings of $3,000 fines, represents just the tip of a blazing iceberg that's costing Australian communities millions of dollars and putting waste workers at serious risk.



In this article



The numbers that should shock us all



In Australia more than 450 fires have been linked to lithium-ion batteries over the past 18 months, with WA recording 81 lithium-ion related fires in the last year compared to 21 in 2018, NSW recording 180, 120 in VIC and 72 in QLD.









But it's not just the frequency that's alarming—it's the acceleration. So far in 2025, there have been 25 lithium-ion-related fires reported to Fire and Rescue NSW alone, compared to just over 16 in the entire year of 2021.




'Every year, we see fires breaking out in garbage trucks and recycling facilities because people are throwing batteries in household bins'

Fire and Rescue NSW



The Cairns Regional Council's warning about their recent Baby Q barbecue fire isn't an isolated incident—it's part of a national emergency that's escalating rapidly.



Recent incidents include four fires in just a month at the City of Canterbury Bankstown, with Australia's peak waste organisations calling for urgent action on the growing hazard.









When convenience becomes costly



The financial impact is staggering. A recent fire caused at least $150,000 damage to an EastWaste collection truck in the Adelaide Hills, and that's just one incident.



These costs inevitably flow through to ratepayers and communities through higher waste management fees and insurance premiums.



In Canterbury Bankstown, dramatic footage shows a truck's load catching fire after a large lithium battery was thrown in a recycling bin, with the driver having to navigate for seven nerve-racking minutes to find a safe dumping location.




The hidden costs of bin fires


Each truck fire can cost $150,000+ in damages


Service disruptions affect entire collection routes


Emergency service call-outs strain local resources


Insurance premiums rise for all councils


Replacement trucks take months to procure




The problem isn't just about money—it's about human safety. Industry experts describe these fires as 'quite terrifying' and note they're 'difficult to extinguish', putting waste collection crews and nearby residents at genuine risk.









The culprits hiding in our homes



While the Cairns incident involved a barbecue, many of these incidents are a direct result of waste contaminated with lithium batteries and other household batteries, which are a no go for kerbside bins.



The most dangerous items commonly found in household rubbish include:





  • Lithium-ion batteries from phones, laptops, power tools, and cameras
  • Vape devices (often with active batteries still inside)
  • Gas cylinders and small barbecues like Baby Q units
  • Electronics with embedded batteries such as toys, remotes, and hearing aids
  • Power tool batteries and chargers





Items that never belong in household bins



  • Any device with a battery (removable or built-in)

  • Gas cylinders and camping equipment

  • Aerosol cans and chemical containers

  • Paint tins and household chemicals

  • Car batteries and power tool batteries




The simple solution that could save lives



Despite these alarming statistics, the solution is remarkably straightforward and convenient.



Currently in Australia, only 10 per cent of batteries are recycled, even though 95 per cent of the materials from batteries can be extracted and used for manufacturing new products.









Australia has a national recycling scheme for batteries with thousands of recycling locations available across the country through the B-cycle program, which has partnered with approximately 100 organisations to provide recycling drop-off points.



For seniors, the most accessible options include:





  • Bunnings stores: All stores have battery recycling units, making it convenient for customers to drop off used batteries with confidence [11]
  • Major supermarkets: Most Coles and Woolworths stores have battery collection points
  • Council offices and libraries: Free drop-off points in most communities
  • Officeworks and electronics retailers: Accept various battery types




What you can do right now



The Queensland penalties outlined in the original Cairns warning—up to $3,338 for individuals—reflect the seriousness of this issue. But rather than focusing on punishment, the emphasis should be on prevention through proper disposal habits.









Before disposing of any battery:





  • Tape the terminals with regular tape to prevent sparking
  • Check for damage - swollen or leaking batteries need special handling
  • Store safely in a cool, dry place until you can dispose of them
  • Remove from devices where possible rather than throwing away the whole item




A shared responsibility for safer communities



The dramatic increase in waste fires—from 21 incidents in WA in 2018 to 81 in the past year alone—shows this problem is accelerating faster than awareness is spreading.



Survey data reveals one in four people (25 per cent) are still putting batteries in their rubbish bins, despite the growing fire risks.



For Australia's senior community, many of whom remember when batteries were simpler and less dangerous, adapting to these new disposal requirements isn't just about avoiding fines—it's about protecting the waste workers who collect our rubbish and keeping our communities safe.









The next time you're replacing the batteries in your TV remote, smoke alarm, or hearing aid, remember that taking them to your local Bunnings or supermarket instead of the bin could prevent a $150,000 fire and keep someone's workplace safe.



Did you know?


Did you know?
Envirostream, Australia's first onshore lithium battery processor, can recover 95 per cent of battery materials including steel, copper, aluminium, graphite, cobalt, nickel and lithium, which are then used to produce new lithium-ion batteries



What's your experience with battery disposal in your local area? Have you noticed the collection points at your regular shopping spots, and do you think more awareness is needed in our communities? Share your thoughts and help spread the word about this important safety issue.




  • Original Article


    https://au.news.yahoo.com/councils-...ergency-situation-061159752.html?guccounter=1





  • The waste industry’s fight for fire safety | Cleanaway

    Cited text: In Australia more than 450 fires have been linked to lithium-ion batteries over the past 18 months, according to data provided by state fire departmen...


    Excerpt: In Australia more than 450 fires have been linked to lithium-ion batteries over the past 18 months, with WA recording 81 lithium-ion related fires in the last year compared to 21 in 2018, NSW recording 180, 120 in VIC and 72 in QLD



    https://www.cleanaway.com.au/sustainable-future/waste-fire-safety/





  • ***VISION ALERT: Spate of lithium-ion fires and NSW Government survey sparks community wakeup call on battery risks—Sydney—Fire and Rescue NSW

    Cited text: So far in 2025, there have been 25 lithium-ion-related fires.


    Excerpt: So far in 2025, there have been 25 lithium-ion-related fires



    https://www.fire.nsw.gov.au/incident.php?record=rec3uefLyukfVBoB9





  • Fires ignite waste warning—Waste Management Review

    Cited text: It follows a scourge of fires within the waste and recycling sector, including four in just a month at the City of Canterbury Bankstown, New South Wal...


    Excerpt: Recent incidents include four fires in just a month at the City of Canterbury Bankstown, with Australia's peak waste organisations calling for urgent action on the growing hazard



    https://wastemanagementreview.com.au/fires-ignite-waste-warning/





  • Fires ignite waste warning—Waste Management Review

    Cited text: https://wastemanagementreview.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/12.36-Hopper.mp4 · On Tuesday, a fire caused at least $150,000 damage to an EastWaste ...


    Excerpt: A recent fire caused at least $150,000 damage to an EastWaste collection truck in the Adelaide Hills



    https://wastemanagementreview.com.au/fires-ignite-waste-warning/





  • Fires ignite waste warning—Waste Management Review

    Cited text: One of the latest incidents occurred when a large lithium battery was thrown in a recycling bin at an apartment block. Dramatic footage of the inciden...


    Excerpt: In Canterbury Bankstown, dramatic footage shows a truck's load catching fire after a large lithium battery was thrown in a recycling bin, with the driver having to navigate for seven nerve-racking minutes to find a safe dumping location



    https://wastemanagementreview.com.au/fires-ignite-waste-warning/





  • Fires ignite waste warning—Waste Management Review

    Cited text: “These fires have become such a prevalent issue because there are a lot of embedded batteries and people aren’t aware of how volatile they are, or dif...


    Excerpt: Industry experts describe these fires as 'quite terrifying' and note they're 'difficult to extinguish'



    https://wastemanagementreview.com.au/fires-ignite-waste-warning/





  • The waste industry’s fight for fire safety | Cleanaway

    Cited text: Many of these incidents are a direct result of waste contaminated with lithium batteries and other household batteries, which are a no go for kerbside...


    Excerpt: many of these incidents are a direct result of waste contaminated with lithium batteries and other household batteries, which are a no go for kerbside bins



    https://www.cleanaway.com.au/sustainable-future/waste-fire-safety/





  • Spike in garbage truck fires prompts safety warning for battery disposal—Waverley Council

    Cited text: “Currently in Australia, only 10 per cent of batteries are recycled, even though 95 per cent of the materials from batteries can be extracted and used for manufacturi...


    Excerpt: Currently in Australia, only 10 per cent of batteries are recycled, even though 95 per cent of the materials from batteries can be extracted and used for manufacturing new products



    https://www.waverley.nsw.gov.au/top...s_prompts_safety_warning_for_battery_disposal





  • Battery Recycling—Planet Ark Recycling Near You

    Cited text: Australia has a national recycling scheme for batteries with thousands of recycling locations available across the country.


    Excerpt: Australia has a national recycling scheme for batteries with thousands of recycling locations available across the country through the B-cycle program, which has partnered with approximately 100 organisations to provide recycling drop-off…



    https://recyclingnearyou.com.au/batteries/





  • Battery Recycling—Planet Ark Recycling Near You

    Cited text: Australia’s national product stewardship scheme for battery recycling is called B-cycle. This program has partnered with approximately 100 organisatio...


    Excerpt: Australia has a national recycling scheme for batteries with thousands of recycling locations available across the country through the B-cycle program, which has partnered with approximately 100 organisations to provide recycling drop-off…



    https://recyclingnearyou.com.au/batteries/





  • Where And How To Recycle Batteries—Bunnings Australia

    Cited text: All our stores have battery recycling units, making it convenient for customers and tradies to drop off used batteries with confidence, knowing they’l...


    Excerpt: All stores have battery recycling units, making it convenient for customers to drop off used batteries with confidence



    https://www.bunnings.com.au/diy-adv...-recycling/where-and-how-to-recycle-batteries





  • ***VISION ALERT: Spate of lithium-ion fires and NSW Government survey sparks community wakeup call on battery risks—Sydney—Fire and Rescue NSW

    Cited text: “This insightful survey shows one in four people (25 per cent) are still putting batteries in their rubbish bins and we need to do better. “Batteries must be ...


    Excerpt: Survey data reveals one in four people (25 per cent) are still putting batteries in their rubbish bins, despite the growing fire risks



    https://www.fire.nsw.gov.au/incident.php?record=rec3uefLyukfVBoB9





  • Battery Recycling—Planet Ark Recycling Near You

    Cited text: Envirostream, Australia’s first onshore lithium, nickel metal and alkaline battery processor, is able to recover 95 per cent of the materials in the batteries...


    Excerpt: Envirostream, Australia's first onshore lithium battery processor, can recover 95 per cent of battery materials including steel, copper, aluminium, graphite, cobalt, nickel and lithium, which are then used to produce new lithium-ion batteries



    https://recyclingnearyou.com.au/batteries/



Last edited:

Seniors Discount Club

Sponsored content

Info
Loading data . . .
I have a zip lock bag that sits in my computer room with the words Dead Batteries, when the bag gets near full I take it to coles but now I will make sure that they have tape over the connectors ......thanks for the heads up as I would hate to start a fire through ignorance.
 
If anyone is interested, trade in your old devices with Costco Moorup Trade In. Just bring your old mobile phone , computer or tablet, have it valued, and get a Costco cash card in exchange. No need to thrown your old devices into the bin, where the baterry in the device can cause a fire, instead, get a cash card that you can use to make purchases at Costco. I must also mention that you need to be a Costco customer member, to conduct the trade-in of your device. 🙏🦋
 
Last edited:

Australia's daily fire crisis: Why your old mobile phone battery could cost taxpayers $150,000​

Every single day, about 30 garbage trucks and waste facilities across Australia burst into flames.
= 16,200 fires over an 18 month period. (Doubt this statistic)

In Australia more than 450 fires have been linked to lithium-ion batteries over the past 18 months, with WA recording 81 lithium-ion related fires in the last year compared to 21 in 2018, NSW recording 180, 120 in VIC and 72 in QLD.
= less than one fire a day caused by Lithium batteries.

Therefore 16,200 fires in 18 months with only 450 caused by Lithium batteries.
That tells me that Lithium batteries are nota huge problem..
 
Nobody should think a mobile battery is harmless
 
Nobody should think a mobile battery is harmless
Nobody said they were not dangerous.
What I have stated is that if there is truly 30 fires a day and only 1 is caused by Lithium batteries then they are not the major concern.
What is of concern is that a Lithium fire is extremely hard to put out and as the EV’s take over there is going to be many more home fires in the next decade than we have ever had.
 
If anyone is interested, trade in your old devices with Costco Moorup Trade In. Just bring your old mobile phone , computer or tablet, have it valued, and get a Costco cash card in exchange. No need to thrown your old devices into the bin, where the baterry in the device can cause a fire, instead, get a cash card that you can use to make purchases at Costco.
Is that after you you pay your $60 odd dollars a year to walk in the door ? No thanks, my local tip has a space just for those things. If it’s phones etc you can trade them in if they are not too old.
 
Is that after you you pay your $60 odd dollars a year to walk in the door ? No thanks, my local tip has a space just for those things. If it’s phones etc you can trade them in if they are not too old.
Dear member June E, goodmorning and thankyou for your post. Yes, it appears that one needs, to be a member of Costco, in order to be able to do a trade-in on a device, in exchange for a cash card. Have a beautiful week. 🙏🦋
 
How do people who aren't able to go to one of these places and have all on-line/home deliveries recycle them?
 
I want to know how a baby q bbq can catch fire without a gas bottle attached.
 
I`m very carefull with batteries, but was not aware that aerosol cans are dangerous, not that I use many aerosol cans these days.
We have provision for batteries at the local tip and also phone batteries outside of Coles.
 
I want to know how a baby q bbq can catch fire without a gas bottle attached.
If you don't even it alight until after the gas bottle has been turned off some gas stays in bbq and "hosing/pipe" that goes to the flame part. It's the same with a mains gas stove in a building. Turn on a "jet" of your stove after your gas meter is disconnected and a small amount of gas will come into the air.
 
Only 10% of batteries are being recycled is a horrifying statistic in this day and age. That suggests that only about 10% of the population are disposing of their batteries responsibly.
Are 90% of the population really that naive, careless, irresponsible or stupid? It seems so!
 
I`m very carefull with batteries, but was not aware that aerosol cans are dangerous, not that I use many aerosol cans these days.
We have provision for batteries at the local tip and also phone batteries outside of Coles.
I`m very carefull with batteries, but was not aware that aerosol cans are dangerous, not that I use many aerosol cans these days.
We have provision for batteries at the local tip and also phone batteries outside of Coles.
Our Council says emptying aerosol cans can be put in the recycle bin. So obviously the cans are not that dangerous . The complete sheet of what goes in all bins was put in mail box recently,at the moment we have only two Waste and Recycle bins. I also got the tick of approval for my recycle bin.
 

Australia's daily fire crisis: Why your old mobile phone battery could cost taxpayers $150,000​

Every single day, about 30 garbage trucks and waste facilities across Australia burst into flames.
= 16,200 fires over an 18 month period. (Doubt this statistic)

In Australia more than 450 fires have been linked to lithium-ion batteries over the past 18 months, with WA recording 81 lithium-ion related fires in the last year compared to 21 in 2018, NSW recording 180, 120 in VIC and 72 in QLD.
= less than one fire a day caused by Lithium batteries.

Therefore 16,200 fires in 18 months with only 450 caused by Lithium batteries.
That tells me that Lithium batteries are nota huge problem..
They are if you're the poor bunny driving the rubbish truck when one catches on fire! Or someone who's house caught on fire due to an over-charged/badly charged lithium battery.
 
What I need to know is what do you do with aerosol cans if you can't throw them in the bin when empty? Just about every form of liquid and some gasses come in aerosol cans - paint, canola cooking oil, flyspray, room deodourisers, furniture polish (I have or have had all of those, and possibly some more, in my house.)
 
Only 10% of batteries are being recycled is a horrifying statistic in this day and age. That suggests that only about 10% of the population are disposing of their batteries responsibly.
Are 90% of the population really that naive, careless, irresponsible or stupid? It seems so!
Dear member Keswickian, good afternoon and thankyou for your post. I respect and agree with your post. It also appears, that a lot of non english speaking people, are unaware of the dangers of irresponsible disposal of batteries. Second, l also believe that many do not know, where to best dispose of their used or unwanted batteries, so the bin just appears to be the only method of getting rid of the battery. More awareness of correct battery disposing, needs to be put out there in different languages. Further, awareness brought to students, via school education should be implemented, so that students can then convey to their parents, on how to safely dispose of the batteries. I don't think that it's a naive, careless, irresponsible or stupid population, more so it could very well be a language barrier issue. Wishing you a beautiful week. 🙏🦋
 
Last edited:
What I need to know is what do you do with aerosol cans if you can't throw them in the bin when empty? Just about every form of liquid and some gasses come in aerosol cans - paint, canola cooking oil, flyspray, room deodourisers, furniture polish (I have or have had all of those, and possibly some more, in my house.)
Most Councils would be able to give you that advice .
 
Our Council says emptying aerosol cans can be put in the recycle bin. So obviously the cans are not that dangerous . The complete sheet of what goes in all bins was put in mail box recently,at the moment we have only two Waste and Recycle bins. I also got the tick of approval for my recycle bin.
Same here it’s a magnetic one you put on your fridge but it’s also listed on our bins.🌞
 

Join the conversation

News, deals, games, and bargains for Aussies over 60. From everyday expenses like groceries and eating out, to electronics, fashion and travel, the club is all about helping you make your money go further.

Seniors Discount Club

The SDC searches for the best deals, discounts, and bargains for Aussies over 60. From everyday expenses like groceries and eating out, to electronics, fashion and travel, the club is all about helping you make your money go further.
  1. New members
  2. Jokes & fun
  3. Photography
  4. Nostalgia / Yesterday's Australia
  5. Food and Lifestyle
  6. Money Saving Hacks
  7. Offtopic / Everything else
  • We believe that retirement should be a time to relax and enjoy life, not worry about money. That's why we're here to help our members make the most of their retirement years. If you're over 60 and looking for ways to save money, connect with others, and have a laugh, we’d love to have you aboard.
  • Advertise with us

User Menu

Enjoyed Reading our Story?

  • Share this forum to your loved ones.
Change Weather Postcode×
Change Petrol Postcode×