How to Dispose of Vapes in the UK

Preserving the ecosystem is a necessity. We’re heading towards catastrophic environmental conditions, where our biosphere is degrading, health issues are consistently rising, and the temperature is increasing. So, it might not be wrong to say that every measure matters, whether on a smaller scale or a larger one.

We can look forward to a healing atmosphere with measures such as tree plantations, smoke-free alternatives, and heavy fines for pollution. We’ve seen improvement in air quality from 2020 to 2024, with the UK meeting its 2020 PM2.5 exposure target (based on AEI). In 2022, the 3-year average AEI remained at 8 µg/m³, again meeting the yearly target.

Although the Department of Environment, Food & Rural Affairs report looks promising, mutual cooperation can increase the pace of improvement and save the country’s economy. So, if you’re wondering how to dispose of vapes UK, you’ll find the easy procedure below:

Following are some reported facts about the single-use vapes:

• Every year, 360 million disposable vapes are purchased in the UK.
• These devices contain 23 tonnes of lithium batteries and copper that can charge 5,000 electric vehicles.
• Around 7.7 million disposable vapes are purchased weekly, double that of 2022.
• The number of disposable vapes thrown away weekly increased from 1.3 million to 5 million. This means that every second, 8 disposable kits are thrown away.
• 73% of vapers throw away single-use devices without disposing of them properly.
• Surprisingly, disposable vapes cover 1.4 million square feet of space.
• Fifty-nine thousand six hundred fifty tonnes of CO2 is released into the atmosphere every year due to vape production.
• Despite all of these harmful impacts, cigarette smoking still has no comparison with 600 million trees and 200,000 hectares of land to release 84 million tonnes of CO2.

After knowing how many disposable vapes are purchased and how many are thrown away, let’s move to the burning question of how to dispose of a vape to understand better!

Specifically, how to dispose of disposable vapes is a pretty simple process. Proper vape disposal is important since plastic materials are extremely harmful to the environment. The best practice is to collect some used vapes and visit any of the thousand shops that accept used and worn-out electrical equipment for recycling.

Several retailers are responsible for acquiring less than 25cm of waste electrical equipment. However, this rule applies to stores with a sales area of more than 400 square meters. Interestingly, some vape shop have also introduced vape disposal bins in their stores across the UK. It doesn’t matter which brand or retailer the vapes are purchased from; users can simply dispose of them while the store transfers them for recycling.

Another way to dispose of these vaping kits is to recycle their parts separately. But where to dispose of vapes? Let’s find out.

Even though a sustainable option would be to refill, recharge, and reuse a device, disposable vapes have their own perks that cannot be neglected. Some of their features include convenience, ease of use, and portability.

Vapes can be recycled by separating their parts. Here’s how:

• If you can easily remove the battery from a vape, you can take it to a recycling centre or vape shop.
• Removing the pod, tank or cartridge from the vape and disposing of them at a recycling point would help in a process called glass recycling. If your vape accessories are made of plastic, there should be a recycling symbol or number below them that you share with the storekeeper.
• Coils can be recycled with metals, but a proper way to recycle them is to wash the coil and remove traces of the e liquids. These coils can also be delivered to a similar recycling point.
• E-liquid bottles are made of plastic, but there are two ways to recycle them. You can drop them off at a recycling facility or fill them with other liquids, like machine oil, to lubricate mechanical parts.
• The vape packages can be thrown in the bin at home since they are primarily made of cardboard and paper.
• The outer body of the vape is made of complete plastic or, in some rare cases, metal. This makes the outer body the most crucial part to dispose of. Once again, the best practice is to deliver it to any recycling facility. If the case is still intact, it can be stored in other liquids and used as a mould at home.

Overall, it's not about how to vape; the idea is to learn its healthy usage to avoid harm to yourself and the community you live in.

If you are wondering how to dispose of disposable vapes UK, the answer is pretty straightforward. You can save the environment significantly by locating recycling facilities or creatively reusing parts for other purposes. Plastic contaminates soil and decomposes from 20 to 500 years. Chlorinated plastic contains harmful chemicals released into the soil, affecting vegetation and water pollution. So, it’s highly recommended and appreciated to help the government in preserving our ecosystem for future generations.