Councils are calling on the Government to close a loophole in disposable vape regulations that is causing a surge in bin lorry and waste centre fires across England.
A year after the single-use vape ban came into force, the Local Government Association (LGA) says the market has simply shifted to rechargeable vapes that are designed, priced and used in the same way as the disposables they replaced – but fall outside the ban's definition.
Over six million vapes are still being thrown away each week, with lithium-ion batteries sparking dangerous fires when crushed in bin lorries.
The LGA is calling on the Government to tighten the statutory definition of a single-use vape, strengthen retail take-back schemes with penalties for non-compliance, increase producer fees and launch a public awareness campaign on safe disposal.
Cllr Dr Wendy Taylor MBE, chair of the LGA's Health and Wellbeing Committee, said councils were ‘bearing the cost’ of fires and contaminated recycling, with residents ultimately footing the bill through council tax instead of producers and retailers.
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