Recycling, hallelujah
Reducing mineral demand, hallelujah
Reusing and repurposing batteries, hallelujah
Committing to a clean energy future, hallelujah
Last week, Colorado made history. The first US electric- and hybrid-vehicle battery recycling policy—with mineral recovery rates, reporting requirements, and measures to lower barriers to battery reuse—was signed by Governor Polis and made law. This will set a standard for the rest of the country.
Electric vehicles (EVs) are essential to reducing both global warming pollution and toxic tailpipe emissions, and they continually outperform their fossil fuel alternatives. But our responsibility for the health of the global community doesn’t stop there. To effectively decarbonize and lessen the impact of our products and transportation, we must reuse, repurpose, and recycle the batteries in our vehicles.
The policy in Colorado ensures that the minerals in EVs today can be used in EVs of the future by requiring recycling and the recovery of lithium, cobalt, and nickel from used batteries. Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) research shows that if the United States adopted recycling and a complementary set of strategies, we could meet about half of future EV battery lithium demand with domestic recycled content by 2050. That means less mining, less emissions, safer communities, and more domestic jobs.
UCS, in partnership with Western Resource Advocates, worked over the past nine months to educate decisionmakers in Colorado about the benefits of recycling and important elements of effective policy. We are ecstatic to see smart policy advance under the leadership of Senators Cutter and Wallace.
But the job isn’t done yet. California, Florida, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Mexico, and Washington State have all introduced bills in the past but were unable to take them across the finish line. Most notably, California SB 615, introduced by Senator Allen, closely resembles this Colorado law. Support from environmental organizations and industry in Colorado demonstrates the desire for a well-thought-out policy that meets stakeholder needs. The time is ripe for this policy to be adopted by other states to create alignment and stability within the market.
Battery recycling means a stronger EV future
UCS is motivated to champion this work because recycling is essential in the creation of a strong and lower-impact EV future. The Colorado law reflects continued negotiation—hours and hours of discussion with industry and environmental partners to get to a place that works for Colorado communities and the future of EV automakers, recyclers, and automotive dismantlers. These stakeholders have come to the table thanks to the years of pressure from environmental organizations. Industry stakeholders have recognized that if left to the market, batteries are bound to slip through cracks, and minerals will not be recovered to their fullest potential. But if we can develop solutions together, we can maximize the mineral recovery and environmental and economic benefits.
The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a group representing the legacy automotive companies, supported the Colorado bill and recognized the benefits of this policy: “This balanced policy approach helps return used EV battery critical minerals to the supply chain, reducing the need for new mineral extraction,” said Nick Steingart, director of state affairs for the Alliance. “By encouraging domestic reuse and recycling of EV batteries, we can create a more resilient local critical mineral supply chain that supports the automotive industrial base and American economic security.”
What does Colorado’s EV battery recycling law do?
The Colorado law supports reuse and recycling goals using several mechanisms:
- Extended producer responsibility. Requires automakers to reuse, repurpose, and recycle batteries they have and those that are unwanted by downstream industries. The commercial entities that handle EVs and their batteries when vehicles retire (think auto dismantlers, mechanics, scrap yards) can reuse or recycle batteries, or have the automaker collect them free of charge.
- Mineral recovery. Requires recyclers to recover 90% of nickel and cobalt, and 50% of lithium, in 2031 (increasing to 80% in 2036) at intermediate form (also known as black mass). These recovery rates effectively prevent smelting, a high-emissions and low-recovery recycling technology.
- Labeling. Requires batteries to be labeled with essential information to increase the efficiency of recycling. This includes the manufacturer, battery chemistry, battery capacity, hazardous substances, and product safety and recall information.
- Battery health transparency. Requires the battery health (including charging capacity) to be accessible by a third party while the battery is in the vehicle. The third party must then document the state of health, which will help downstream entities decide if it is suitable for reuse and repurposing.
- Reporting. Requires automakers to report information about battery collection and recycling to the state. This includes the batteries collected, length of time until pickup reason for non-collection, recycling recovery rates, form of recovered materials, and the percent of batteries reused, repurposed, and recycled.
- Funding. Requires automakers to cover regulators’ costs, ensuring proper oversight by the state.
- Survey of effectiveness. Requires the state to conduct a survey to understand if the program is working and assess if there are any cracks that need to be addressed.
The biggest wins of this policy include holding a centralized party (automakers) responsible for unwanted batteries, and that the recovery of key minerals is required and independent from the mineral market price. By creating a centralized responsible party, regulators can enforce these laws at lower cost to the taxpayer and ensure the minerals are going back into the supply chain.
California, are you next?
California started this conversation in 2019 and made important strides: an advisory group was formed and a report published. Due to the high volume of EV sales in the state, it is clear from this work that there would be large environmental and economic benefits if California EV batteries were reused and recycled.
Senate Bill 615 built off this work by creating a framework that holds producers responsible for recycling EV batteries they have placed on the market. The bill passed the legislature in 2024 but was vetoed by Governor Newsom, who stated that it didn’t fit the typical format for producer responsibility. We at UCS have a good reason for our recommended approach that hinges on the unique nature of EV batteries in terms of safety and market forces.
“Extended producer responsibility” is used in California to hold producers responsible for products including textiles, packaging, mattresses, carpets, paint, pharmaceuticals, sharps, and consumer electronic batteries. These are all low-value products that are unlikely to be recycled, and some of them pose a safety risk when improperly disposed of.
EV batteries partially fall into this category. Some are likely to be recycled, while others aren’t, but all of them pose a risk if improperly stored or disposed of. Because EV batteries fall into multiple categories, the typical extended producer responsibility has been modified through six years of discussion in California, resulting in a policy that meets the product’s needs by providing a safety net when the market isn’t functioning properly.
It is especially important to have automakers be responsible for batteries that are damaged or don’t contain high-value minerals. The modified extended producer responsibility framework ensures that automakers are responsible for the collection and recycling of unwanted batteries, as there is a risk of improper disposal or storage, which could lead to fires and wastes materials that could otherwise return to the supply chain.
There are also batteries that can be reused or repurposed to extend their life in another vehicle or as stationary storage, and companies are building brands to do so, which creates a market for these used batteries. In addition, some batteries contain valuable minerals, such as nickel and cobalt, that recyclers are willing to pay for. When there isn’t a market for the used batteries or materials, the automaker is responsible for collection and recycling.
Overall, EV battery recycling requirements will minimize the mining needed to transition to a sustainable transportation system, reduce environmental impacts, protect our community from potential fires caused by improperly stored or disposed of batteries, and support the US economy.