CIWM trainer Jane Hall, Director of Green Edge Applications Limited, warns why every waste site should be concerned about vape fires.
For many people working in the waste and resources sector, lithium-ion battery fires have become synonymous with battery recycling plants and WEEE facilities. Yet this perception is becoming increasingly outdated.
Disposable and rechargeable vapes are now creating fire risks across almost every type of waste operation, from household waste recycling centres and waste transfer stations to Energy-from-Waste (EfW) plants, composting sites and anaerobic digestion (AD) facilities.
The common factor is not the type of facility. It is the way vapes are being discarded.
A problem that starts at the kerbside
Every vape contains a lithium-ion battery. When these batteries are crushed, punctured or damaged during collection, handling or processing, they can enter thermal runaway – a self-sustaining chemical reaction that generates intense heat, toxic gases, and fire. Unlike conventional fires, lithium-ion battery fires are difficult to extinguish and can reignite long after the initial incident.
The waste industry has become the unintended recipient of millions of incorrectly discarded vapes. Although the UK banned the sale of disposable vapes on 1 June 2025, the problem has not disappeared.
Material Focus estimates that around 6.3 million vapes and vape pods were still being discarded every week during 2025, despite a 23% reduction following the ban.
A year on from the ban nearly half of vapers remain unaware that vapes can and should be recycled, and the consequences are becoming increasingly visible through the waste management chain.
Fires are increasing
The National Fire Chiefs Council estimates that more than 1,200 battery fires occur within the UK waste system every year, affecting bin lorries, transfer stations, recycling facilities and treatment plants. The number of fires has increased by around 71% compared with two years earlier, with discarded lithium-ion batteries, particularly from vapes, identified as one of the principal causes.
The issue extends well beyond waste sites. Freedom of Information requests analysed by Zurich Insurance found that UK fire and rescue services attended 172 vape-related fires during 2025, compared with 132 in 2024 and just 31 in 2021, demonstrating the rapid growth of incidents involving these products.
Waste operators are experiencing the consequences daily. Veolia has reported approximately one fire every day somewhere across its vehicles or facilities, believed to be largely associated with hidden lithium-ion batteries, while Biffa has reported receiving more than 200,000 incorrectly recycled vapes every month within mixed waste collections.
Not just a WEEE problem
Historically, the industry has viewed lithium battery fires as primarily affecting WEEE recyclers. That is no longer the case.
Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs) receive significant numbers of incorrectly discarded vapes in residual waste containers. Waste transfer stations compact and bulk mixed municipal waste, increasing the likelihood of batteries becoming damaged before onward transport.
EfW facilities face a different challenge. Batteries entering waste bunkers can ignite waste before combustion, while fires on conveyors, within storage bunkers or in waste handling equipment can disrupt operations and require significant firefighting intervention.
At AD facilities, feedstocks are increasingly sourced from municipal and commercial food waste collections. Although pre-treatment systems, where installed, can remove contaminants, damaged batteries entering shredders, depackaging equipment or conveyors can ignite surrounding combustible material before separation occurs.
Similarly, composting facilities routinely receive contamination from incorrectly presented wastes. Composting feedstocks can contain dry combustible material and, once a battery enters thermal runaway, the resulting ignition source can rapidly spread through stockpiles or processing equipment.
Operators of biowaste sites are increasingly discovering vapes in their incoming waste streams and yes, it seems people are using food and garden waste caddies to dispose of them.
At biowaste sites, operators have traditionally focused on biological heating, spontaneous combustion and machinery fires. Lithium-ion batteries introduce an entirely different ignition mechanism.
Technology to detect heat and fires
As lithium-ion battery fires continue to increase, waste operators are investing in costly technologies to detect vapes and other battery-powered devices before they ignite.
Thermal imaging cameras identify overheating batteries and early signs of thermal runaway, while AI-enabled camera systems can automatically detect smoke, flames and abnormal heat signatures.
X-ray, optical and sensor-based sorting technologies are also being deployed to identify and remove batteries before shredding or compaction, and emerging gas detection systems may provide even earlier warning by detecting electrolyte vapours.
Although these technologies significantly reduce the risk of fire, they cannot eliminate it entirely, reinforcing the need to prevent vapes from entering mixed waste streams in the first place, and they are likely to be outside of the purchasing ability for many smaller operators.
Prevention starts before waste reaches the site
The waste industry has invested heavily in fire prevention infrastructure. Thermal cameras, fire detection systems, suppression equipment, staff training and improved housekeeping have all become standard practice across many facilities.
However, these measures only address the symptoms. The root cause remains that millions of consumers continue to dispose of vapes in residual or other waste bins rather than returning them for recycling through retailer take-back schemes or dedicated WEEE collection points.
Many vape sellers do not facilitate collection of used vapes, despite the legal requirement to do so where non-compliance could result in potentially unlimited fines.
Under the WEEE Regulations, retailers selling vapes already have obligations to provide take-back arrangements. Yet consumer awareness remains low, and many users still perceive vapes as disposable products rather than electrical equipment containing rechargeable batteries.
This disconnect means waste operators continue to bear the operational risks and financial costs of a problem created much earlier in the product lifecycle.
A shared responsibility
The disposable vape ban has reduced the number entering the market, but it has not removed the risk. Rechargeable devices continue to contain lithium-ion batteries and are often discarded after relatively short periods of use.
Vape suppliers have navigated the UK’s ban on single-use vapes by introducing multi-pod ‘big puff’ devices and low-cost, rechargeable pod systems. These legal workarounds mimic the convenience of old disposables while complying with the law by being rechargeable or having swappable cartridges.
Reducing fires therefore requires action across the entire supply chain. Manufacturers should continue improving product design and clearly communicating end-of-life requirements. Retailers must ensure convenient and visible take-back facilities, and the Trading Standards Office has an important role in enforcement to ensure vape take-back schemes are in place.
Several organisations have suggested that a deposit return for vapes could support change. Under such a system, consumers would pay a small refundable deposit when purchasing a vape, which would be returned when the device is taken back to a retailer or designated collection point for recycling.
Although no UK Government has announced plans to introduce a mandatory deposit return scheme for vapes, the concept has received support from parts of the waste and resources sector as a means of increasing collection rates, reducing litter and preventing lithium-ion batteries from entering residual waste streams.
For waste operators, Fire Prevention Plans should recognise that lithium-ion batteries may be present in many incoming waste streams, not just WEEE. Incoming waste acceptance checks, site inspections, staff awareness, incident reporting and emergency planning should all reflect this reality.
Vape fires are no longer a niche issue affecting specialist battery recyclers. They have become a cross-sector risk for many waste management operations in the UK. Until consumers routinely dispose of vapes through the correct collection routes, the waste industry will continue to manage the consequences.