Can You Throw Regular Household Batteries In The Trash In Massachusetts?

While my recycling habits are not the best, I certainly do not hate the planet. With changing rules in Massachusetts, one may get confused about what is safe to go in the trash and/or common recycling bin.

I was pondering whether or not to get a new flat screen TV for my children the other day because I couldn't figure out what was wrong with it. It's a 2007 Phillips, so I assumed it had gone bad. Turns out, it was just the Amazon Fire Stick that was the problem.

This sort of prompted me to think of how I was going to get rid of it. Yes, I actually had to google of you could throw your old flat screen TV in the trash in Massachusetts. I kind of knew you couldn't, but I had to check. 😂

The point is, you just never know and it's important to not be a jerk and be environmentally conscious.

What About Regular Household Batteries? AAA, AA, C, D, 9V, Etc..? Can They Get Thrown In The Trash?

My aunt and uncle were in town for a visit some months ago and my environmentally SUPER conscious uncle sort of snickered at me when I threw a dead set of AA batteries in my trash bin.

"You're not supposed to do that, you know, it's terrible for the soil in landfills".

While it can be frowned upon, it is certainly not illegal to dispose of regular household batteries in the trash in Massachusetts.

Traditional single-use batteries (those that can't be re-charged) are the easiest.  These are your everyday AA, AAA, C, D and 9-volt batteries and their "chemistry" is either alkaline or lithium (not to be confused with lithium-ion, which is a whole different animal!).  Both alkaline and lithium batteries are safe to throw in the trash. -keepmassbeautiful.org

So, yes, you can. Other batteries, such as lithium ion, (computers, cell phones), are not safe for trash or recycling, however, because of fire risk.

I hope you found this post informative.