Phasing out Lead-acid Batteries [RE-wrenches]

Mon Sep 1 12:16:17 PDT 2003

Fellow Wrenches,
Here's something we might want to keep on our long-term radar, as we use,
sell, and recycle a lot of lead-acid batteries. This came some weeks ago on
the e-mail newsletter of the Clean Car Campaign of Environmental Defense.
They have initiated a campaign to phase out lead-acid batteries in cars.

What follows is text of the original message post, followed by a response I
sent to them questioning their campaign, and finally their explanatory
response I received a few days ago.

All said, I'm not taking a position one way or another on this. I see both
sides. I suspect that this is another area where our industry will look very
different in a decade.

Allan at Positive Energy
Santa Fe, NM

----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Environmental Defense
  Sent: Friday, August 08, 2003 8:04 AM
  Subject: Tell automakers to get the lead out

  Dear Allan,

  Lead has been banned from paint and gasoline for decades because it is one
of the most harmful chemicals known. Cars and light trucks contain most of
the lead used today, posing a continuing threat to children's health. Tell
automakers and battery manufacturers to get the lead out.

  Send a letter to the following decision maker(s): Automakers and Car
Battery Manufacturers

  Below is the sample letter:

  Subject: Phase out lead content in cars and car batteries

  Dear [decision maker name automatically inserted here],

  Please phase out the use of lead in America's cars and trucks, and in car
batteries, by using and developing safer alternatives.

  Every year, the auto industry in North America is responsible for the
release or transfer of 300 million pounds of lead, a metal so toxic that its
use in consumer products such as gasoline and paint was banned decades ago.
Children are most vulnerable to lead's effects, which include brain damage,
learning disorders, and behavioral problems.

  A single car component, the lead-acid battery, accounts for 57% of the
world's lead use today.  I urge you to phase out the use of lead in
batteries in favor of safer alternatives.

  Finally, I urge automakers to eliminate other sources of lead in vehicles.
For example, auto designers should substitute tin or steel for lead in wheel
weights, and switch to lead-free solder.

  Removing lead from cars and car batteries will protect our children and
our environment.

  I urge you to phase out the use of lead-acid batteries, and implement in
North America the lead phase-out requirements outlined in the European
Union's End-of-Life Vehicle Directive.  During a transition to lead-free
cars and trucks, I also urge you to take responsibility for recovering and
safely managing lead used in your products.

  Thank you.

  Sincerely,

My response to them:
This is bogus. Some 97% of batteries are recycled, or so I
thought--batteries are one of recycling's success stories. Also, I work in
the renewable energy/solar electric power field. We use a lot of lead-acid
batteries for off-grid homes. Our recycling rate for old batteries is
somewhere around 100%. Are we supposed to find safer alternatives too?
If so, can you please suggest one?

Please reply to this. Thanks.
Allan Sindelar, president
Positive Energy
www.positiveenergysolar.com

And their response:

From: <kthomas at environmentaldefense.org>
Sent: Friday, August 29, 2003 11:56 AM
Subject: Lead in Cars Action Alert comments

> Dear Allan Sindelar:
>
> Thank you for your interest in our Lead in Cars Action Alert.  We would
> like to provide some additional information on the two points you raised -
> - the high rate of recycling of lead acid batteries and the availability
of
> alternatives for automotive and other uses.  If you have any further
> questions for us, please feel free to send us an email.
>
> Many lead acid batteries are recycled:
>
> Using the most recent information available at the time of our research,
> our report assumed that 93% of lead-acid auto batteries are recycled.  The
> rate over time is sometimes lower and sometimes higher than this figure.
> We agree that the auto battery recycling rate is impressive, but conclude
> that even a small percentage of batteries that are not recycled can be
> environmentally significant due to the large amount of lead used in an
auto
> battery and the massive volumes of auto batteries in commerce.
>
> Our report concludes that over 40,000 metric tons/year of lead enters the
> wastestream from auto batteries that are not recycled.  Most batteries
that
> are not recycled are landfilled or illegally dumped and may result in
> contamination of soil and water (or air, if incinerated).
>
> Also important to our view is that  the process of recycling lead
batteries
> contributes to emissions from smelters.  Secondary lead production for
> automotive applications is responsible for over 6,000 metric tons/year of
> reported lead releases and transfers.
>
>
> Battery alternatives - performance, environmental impacts, cost:
>
> Our report did not investigate alternatives to the lead acid battery for
> uses other than in autos.  However, by targeting the largest users of lead
> acid batteries, the automotive industry, we intend to move forward
> resesarch and commercialization of alternative battery technologies, which
> would ultimately benefit other battery users as well, such as the
renewable
> energy industry.
>
> Alternative automotive battery technology is an area of intense research.
> The Department of Energy (Office of Transportation Technologies -- Office
> of Advanced Automotive Technologies), Lawrence Berkeley National Lab,
> Argonne National Lab, US Council for Automotive Resarch (US Advanced
> Battery Consortium) and UC Davis (Institute of Transportation Studies) are
> among the many groups working on this complex issue.
>
> Electrical demands in new vehicles are increasing due to changing needs,
> including entertainment and information-access devices.  To meet these
> needs, manufacturers are moving to higher volatage systems, such as 24-,
> 36- and 42-volt systems.  The standard 12 volt lead acid battery will not
> meet these needs and even advanced lead acid batteries are challenged to
> satisfy the high voltage requirements due to weight and specific energy
> limitations.  The time is right to encourage the research and use of
> battery systems that decrease the use of lead acid batteries, eliminating
> their use over time.
>
> Our research identified nickel-metal-hydride and lithium ion battery
> systems as possible alternatives to the lead acid battery for automotive
> uses.  Nickel-metal-hydride batteries are already being used in high
> voltage battery systems in electric and hybrid-electric vehicles.  Lithium
> ion batteries are also emerging in automotive  uses, such as the Federal
> Express deisel hybrid delivery vehicle.
>
> Environmental impacts of alternatives
> Nickel-metal-hydride batteries are certainly not environmentally benign,
> and nickel production is a health concern.  However, life cycle assessment
> research has rated nickel-metal-hydride batteries as environmentally
> preferable to lead acid batteries.  (For example, see Environmental
Science
> and Technology, January 1, 1998, pp. 40A-46A, "An Abridged Life Cycle
> Assessment of Electric Vehicle Batteries.") Lithium has less toxicity
> concern than either lead or nickel, and safety concerns over the use of
> lithium have been addressed in the lithium-ion battery formulation.
>
> Our recommendations acknowledge the need for a transition plan on the way
> to a 10-year phase out of lead, which should include further work on
> comparative health impacts of the batteries.
>
> Cost
> The auto industry is already moving toward more expensive 42V battery
> systems for performance reasons; the question is whether they will place a
> priority on batteries that avoid the use of lead.  Our analysis shows that
> at commercial volumes, nickel metal hydride batteries could cost roughly
> the same as current lead-acid batteries if their longer life is taken into
> account, while also weighing less and taking up less space.  With a
> comprehensive transition plan to develop and commercialize alternative
> batteries, consumers may simply get better performing batteries at similar
> cost.  Automakers need a clear signal that lead-free alternatives must be
> further refined and brought to market in higher volumes to achieve
> economies of scale.
>
> For additional information about the performance benefits of the
> alternatives, see our "Alternative to Lead Acid Starter Batteries,"
>
http://www.environmentaldefense.org/documents/2894_FactSheet_batteryalts.pdf

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