SWANA partners with Fire Rover to launch battery fire reporting tool

The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) and Fire Rover have created a new collaborative webpage dedicated to improving battery safety and preventing fires caused by improperly disposed lithium-ion batteries in the waste and recycling stream.

Discover a new tool to report lithium-ion battery fires

The new webpage serves as a new resource for fire safety and data collection. Waste and resource management professionals can use the page to report fires that have occurred at their facilities or in vehicles. The reporting feature, which allows anonymous reporting, includes fields for details on the fire incident, the cause if known, and photos. SWANA will use the data and examples to support outreach and advocacy efforts for battery safety.

Fires caused by batteries have become an ongoing challenge across the waste and recycling industry. As lithium-ion batteries become more common in everyday products, they too often end up in household trash and recycling bins, where they can ignite fires in collection vehicles, processing facilities, and landfills. The new webpage was created to help address this issue through education, data collection, and access to safety resources.

Key features of the webpage include:

• A searchable tool to help users find battery drop-off and recycling locations near them
• An anonymous fire reporting feature to support industry data collection and awareness
• Educational content and resources focused on battery safety and fire prevention
• Information highlighting the shared role of communities and industry professionals in reducing battery-related fire risks
• The webpage builds on the broader partnership between SWANA and Fire Rover, which focuses on data sharing, education, and joint programming to mitigate fire hazards associated with lithium-ion batteries. Through this collaboration, both organizations aim to support safer practices and provide actionable resources for the waste and resource management industry. 

SWANA members and industry stakeholders are encouraged to explore the new webpage, share it within their organizations and communities, and use its tools to support responsible battery disposal and fire prevention efforts.

"Battery safety has been a top priority for SWANA. This new webpage is our latest tool to support our members and the public with preventing battery-related fires," shared SWANA CEO Amy Lestition Burke, MA, FASAE, CAE. "We have been hearing from our SWANA Lithium-Ion Battery Workgroup about the need for a centralized database to report battery fires. Fire Rover, a corporate partner of SWANA, worked with us to make this a reality. We appreciate this productive partnership with Fire Rover."

"This new webpage reflects the shared mission of SWANA and Fire Rover to protect workers, facilities, and the public from the growing risk of fires linked to lithium-ion batteries," stated Ryan Fogelman of Fire Rover. "Preventing battery-caused fires requires education, shared responsibility, and access to practical solutions."