Some batteries contain toxic metals, such as cadmium, lead or mercury, which pose a threat to human health and the environment when batteries are improperly disposed.
With so many kinds of batteries, it can be confusing to know what to do with them. To make it simple, we accept all types of household batteries at Hennepin County drop-off facilities.
Batteries are accepted from households only; batteries from businesses are not accepted - see our information for commercial hazardous waste generators.
Household batteries include rechargeable, button and alkaline batteries.
Hennepin County accepts household batteries and vehicle batteries at the county's drop-off facilities in Brooklyn Park and Bloomington.
On October 28, 2019, the county discontinued collecting batteries at city and county buildings, libraries, schools, and community centers.
Due to potential fire hazards, it is no longer safe to collect batteries at community locations. The combination of vape pens/e-cig devices and rechargeable batteries that are flammable is dangerous. Staff investigated using other types of collection containers to reduce the risk of fires, but currently containers do not exist that would eliminate the potential fire hazard.