Report highlights spike in U.S. lead-battery exports to Mexico

Two environmental groups report a surge in U.S. exports of used lead-acid batteries to Mexico, and suggest it might be the result of U.S. companies skirting tough new standards north of the border on airborne lead. In a joint study released June 14, Occupational Knowledge International, a San Francisco organization, and Fronteras Comunes in Mexico City say U.S. exports of used lead-acid batteries to Mexico more than doubled from 2009 to 2010. The exports began to spike in 2008, after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency tightened national air-quality standards for airborne lead. The battery shipments reached 237,389 metric tons last year—up from almost zero in 2006. The study notes regulation of battery recycling plants is considerably weaker in Mexico than in... [Log in to read more]

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