Battery recycling program to start

GAF PROGRAM

The Golden Age Foundation (GAF) will collect dead batteries for recycling on Tuesday, Nov. 15, from 9:30-11:30 a.m. in the parking lot of Clubhouse 2. The service will be provided every quarter to help residents recycle batteries on-site.

Last month, Leisure World’s longtime battery disposal collection service was discontinued after cost increases in pickup and processing made it impractical to continue.

In 2021, the GAF recycled between 3,000-5,000 pounds of batteries, but the cost of recycling shot up from less than $1 a pound to over $4 a pound. As a result, collection points once supplied by the Golden Rain Foundation for GAF’s convenience are no longer available.

The new service will accept the following types of batteries:

• Alkaline

• Carbon zinc

• Nickel Cadmium (NiCd)

• Nickel metal-hydride (NiMH)

• Lithium ion (Li-Ion)

• Lithium metal

• Silver oxide

• Button cell batteries and all other dry cell batteries Basically this includes all household, cell phone and laptop batteries, and small, button-type batteries. People should place each lithium battery in a separate baggie as part of the recycling requirements. GAF must bag the batteries prior to sending them to the recycler. Recycling batteries is very important to keep waste fees low and keep the planet clean.

This service is for Leisure World shareholders’ personal household batteries only (no business batteries).

For more information, call Carl Kennedy at (661) 810-9410. The Golden Age Foundation has been serving the Leisure World community for over 49 years. The GAF is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization established in 1973 to enhance the quality of Leisure World life. Through the support of volunteers, individuals and organizations the GAF has organized and implemented many programs—hospitality, income tax assistance, loan of mobility aids, document shredding and recycling—that have benefited the community at no cost to shareholders.

—Anna Derby