Power tools should never be put in your recycling bin at home. Currently, Australia doesn’t have a national recycling scheme for electrical products, however, there are recycling options.
Many commercial recyclers will accept power tools for recycling. Use the directory on this page to see if there is one in your area. Call the recycler in advance to check if they will accept the product you want to recycle.
Some councils offer e-waste recycling events or permanent drop-off locations where you can drop off electrical products including power tools. Check directly with your council to see if they offer this service.
Check with the manufacturer of the product to see if they have a take-back service.
If you are not able to find a recycler or a collection point, contact your council for advice on whether the power tool can be put in your garbage bin. Some states and territories have landfill bans on e-waste.
Power tools, both rechargeable and plug-in varieties, are classified as e-waste (electrical waste), which is the fastest growing waste stream in Australia. Recycling power tools enables the recovery of various metals and plastics and helps prevent toxic heavy metals from leaching into the environment via landfills.
A typical power tool contains a range of materials including iron, steel, aluminium, copper and various plastics, which can all be recycled. Sending power tools to landfill contributes to environmental problems such as the non-sustainable use of resources and the contamination of groundwater caused by toxic metals leaching into the soil.
Power tools that contain rechargeable batteries are particularly dangerous, as the batteries contain highly toxic metals such as nickel and cadmium. These batteries are classified as hazardous waste and should always be removed from the power tool and recycled separately. Some recyclers will accept both the power tool and the battery, however, if they do not accept batteries, they can be dropped off for recycling at designated battery collection points.
E-waste recyclers disassemble the power tools and sort the materials for recycling. If there are problems identifying and separating materials into specific types, the complete tool is shredded by more conventional methods and only metals are recovered. This can be a problem with older tools where materials have not been coded or identified.
The nickel-cadmium batteries are sent to an approved recycling facility where the nickel, steel and cadmium are recovered. The recovered metals are made into other products, while the cadmium can be returned to battery manufacturers to create a fully closed loop recycling system.
Tool libraries (sometimes referred to as Libraries of Things), are community-run centres that allow members to hire power tools, just like a book from a library. After paying an annual fee, members can hire anything at the centre for free. This sharing system reduces the need for individuals to purchase items like power tools, which they may only use once or twice a year. Tool libraries often have a variety of goods for hire such as camping gear, fishing equipment and kitchen appliances.
If you have a power tool that is in good working order that you no longer need, consider donating it to your local tool library so it can be used by your community. This is a far better environmental outcome than recycling the power tool, as it ensures the precious materials and resources used to make the product are kept in use at their highest value.
Find your local Library of Things or Tool Library.
Image credit: Inner West Tool Library.
