At Tuesday’s meeting of the EU Environment Council, Austria, backed by Germany and Lithuania, is placing the growing risk of battery fires in the waste management industry on the agenda. The three countries are urging the European Commission to expedite its planned assessment of an EU-wide deposit return scheme (DRS) for batteries as one of several measures that should be taken to address the threat posed by improperly managed batteries.
The Commission is already obligated by Article 63 of the EU Batteries Regulation to assess the feasibility and potential benefits of European battery deposit return systems by the end of 2027. The signatories, however, are calling for an evaluation to be conducted "without delay".
They argue that the findings will have a direct bearing on how member states proceed. Depending on the Commission’s position, governments would need to decide whether national approaches are necessary, for example adjustments to extended producer responsibility (EPR) schemes.
Unilateral actions on deposit systems are seen as impractical, in light of their potential to disrupt the internal market and cross-border trade. The signatory member states therefore stress the need for "timely clarification" on whether the Commission intends to draft its own legislative proposals.
Major fires causing damage running into millions of euros
In their note, the three delegations note their increasing concern. Despite the existence of efficient and well-established separate collection systems, lithium-ion batteries (LIB) frequently end up in residual waste or other unsuitable waste streams.
This, they note, led to major fires causing damage running into millions of euros in several member states in the summer of 2025. The result was not only "significant and escalating safety risk for workers, severe environmental damage and substantial economic losses"; waste management operators were also "increasingly struggling to obtain insurance coverage that remains economically feasible".
At the national level, Austria recently joined France, Belgium and Ireland in introducing legislation that would ban the sale of disposable e-cigarettes. The draft law would impose a ban from 2027 and refers explicitly to the fire risk posed by battery-containing devices when they are incorrectly disposed of.
Austria, Germany and Lithuania argue that a comprehensive solution requires that "effective and harmonised measures across the European Union" be established "as swiftly as possible". In addition to a DRS, the Commission is asked to examine other financial incentives to improve collection. They also encourage Brussels to consider complementary preventive measures, such as improved labelling, including listing chemistry information directly on batteries, as well as enhanced consumer education campaigns.
Another issue addressed is liability for "unavoidable damage" resulting from fires caused by lithium batteries and whether financing for the remediation of this kind of damage should come from EPR systems. This approach mirrors repeated calls from national and European waste management and recycling associations which support the establishment of a producer-financed compensation fund. The statement concludes by pressing for stricter monitoring of online sales and more rigorous enforcement of product compliance with EU legislation.
