Why do I need to tape battery terminals?

Lithium-ion batteries can short circuit if the positive and negative terminals touch metal (keys, coins, wires). This can cause fires in collection bins and trucks. Use clear tape or electrical tape to cover the terminals.

Can lithium-ion batteries go in the trash?

Never — lithium-ion batteries are classified as hazardous waste. They can cause fires in landfills and recycling facilities. All states require them to be recycled or disposed as hazardous waste.

Battery Recycling · Portland, OR · Local guide

Lithium Ion Battery Disposal in Portland

Q: Where can Portland residents drop off lithium ion battery disposal?

Metro Central HHW Facility accepts most household items. Daily 9 AM-4 PM. Free HHW drop-off, also accepts electronics (Oregon E-Cycles, 7/day limit) and batteries. 35-gallon HHW per visit cap. Phone: (503) 234-3000. Verify hours and accepted items before going.

Drop at Metro Central or Metro South HHW (free, daily 9 AM-4 PM, up to 35 gal HHW/visit) or at Call2Recycle network locations: Home Depot, Lowe's, Staples, and Portland-area bike shops. Oregon's new battery EPR law (HB 4144) will require a producer-funded statewide collection system by 2029 and bans batteries from the trash; the law was driven by 58 battery-caused fires at Metro's transfer stations in 2025 alone.

Where to drop off lithium ion battery disposal in Portland

6 local options, verified against listing sources.

Multnomah County household hazardous waste program

Metro Central HHW Facility

Daily 9 AM-4 PM. Free HHW drop-off, also accepts electronics (Oregon E-Cycles, 7/day limit) and batteries. 35-gallon HHW per visit cap.

Phone: (503) 234-3000 · Website: official program page ↗

Other local programs

Metro Central Transfer Station HHW Facility

Permanent HHW drop-off in NW Portland at 6161 NW 61st Ave. Free for households, up to 35 gallons per visit by container size. Accepts electronics (free via Oregon E-Cycles, up to 7 items/day), paint (free via PaintCare), batteries, fluorescent bulbs, pesticides, automotive fluids, and medications. Open daily 9AM-4PM.

Phone: 503-234-3000
Metro South Transfer Station HHW Facility

Second permanent HHW facility in greater Portland (Oregon City, Clackamas County). Free HHW drop-off for households up to 35 gallons by container size. Also an Oregon E-Cycles site (7 covered electronics per day) and PaintCare site.

Phone: 503-234-3000
Oregon E-Cycles (state program)

Free recycling of computers, monitors, laptops, tablets, TVs (CRT and flat-panel with viewable area >4" diagonal), printers, keyboards, and mice. Up to 7 items per person per visit at any participating collector statewide. Households, small businesses, and small nonprofits (10 or fewer employees) qualify.

Phone: 888-769-0149
PaintCare Oregon

Statewide paint stewardship program. Free drop-off for latex and oil-based architectural paints, primers, stains, sealers, shellac, and varnish at ~190+ year-round sites (most are independent paint and hardware retailers). Containers up to 5 gallons accepted. Free Large Volume Pickup (LVP) for contractors/property managers with 100+ gallons.

Phone: 855-724-6809
Metro Recycling Information / Ask Metro

Bilingual (English/Spanish) hotline for recycling, garbage, hazardous waste, and waste-reduction questions across the tri-county Portland metro. Mon-Fri 8:30 AM-5 PM.

Phone: 503-234-3000
Metro Neighborhood Hazardous Waste Collection Events

Free traveling HHW collection events in cities across the tri-county area, weekends from early spring through mid-November. No charge to drop off household hazardous waste. Typically held the last Saturday of each month March-November (excluding July/August).

Phone: 503-234-3000
Call2Recycle (battery drop-off network)

Free drop-off for rechargeable batteries (including lithium-ion up to 11 lb) and single-use batteries (fees may apply) at participating Portland-area Home Depot, Lowe's, Staples, and battery/bike shops.

Phone: 877-723-1297
BottleDrop / Oregon Bottle Bill (OBRC)

10-cent deposit redemption on beverage containers (water, soda, beer, kombucha, etc.). Return at grocery retailers, BottleDrop redemption centers, or via prepaid Green Bag account drop. Hand-count limit 50 containers/day; SB 992 (2025) authorizes alternative redemption centers in cities >500,000 (Portland only) accepting up to 350 containers/person/day.

Phone: 503-892-0395
Green Century Electronics Recycling (NW Portland)

R2v3-, ISO 14001-, and ISO 45001-certified electronics recycler in NW Portland. On-site hard-drive destruction, business and consumer electronics drop-off.

Phone: 503-764-9963
Far West Recycling (Portland)

Family-owned, R2-certified electronics recycler and ITAD provider in Portland. Handles commercial e-waste, on-site data destruction, and bulk recycling services. Accepts CRTs, computers, printers, and scrap metal.

Phone: 503-255-2299
Free Geek Portland

Nonprofit that accepts and refurbishes donated computers, laptops, tablets, and electronics. Provides free or low-cost computers to low-income individuals and non-profits. Also offers e-waste drop-off for items not suitable for refurbishment. Located in SE Portland.

Phone: 503-232-9350

What to know in Portland

Local rules and laws

Oregon E-Cycles (ORS 459A.305-365): manufacturer-funded statewide e-waste program since 2009. Covers computers, monitors, TVs, laptops, tablets, printers, keyboards, and mice. Free up to 7 items/visit; households and small businesses/nonprofits with <=10 employees qualify.
Oregon Paint Stewardship Law (2009, program launched July 2010): Oregon was the FIRST state in the U.S. to launch a PaintCare paint-recycling program. Funded by a per-container fee at point of sale.
Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act (SB 582, 2021; effective July 1, 2025): first Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) system for packaging in the U.S. Producers fund collection, sorting, and processing. Curbside list expanded statewide July 2025 to add screw-on plastic caps (attached to bottles) and clean pizza boxes.
Oregon Bottle Bill (1971, first in the U.S.): 10-cent deposit (raised from 5 cents on April 1, 2017 after redemption fell below 80% for two consecutive years).
Oregon HB 4144 / battery EPR (2024-2025 session): producer-funded statewide battery collection program required to launch by 2029; bans portable and medium-format (<=25 lb) batteries from the trash.
ORS 459A.010-040: Oregon's statewide recycling mandate requires local governments to provide recycling collection; prohibits the disposal of recyclable materials (including covered electronics) in landfills.
City of Portland Commercial Recycling Ordinance (Title 11): requires all commercial businesses and multifamily properties to have recycling service and meet minimum diversion requirements.

Useful local details

Metro is a unique elected regional government covering urban Multnomah, Washington, and Clackamas counties and 24 cities. It — not the county — runs the two permanent HHW facilities (Metro Central in NW Portland, Metro South in Oregon City) and the regional recycling hotline.
HHW free drop-off is capped at 35 gallons per visit by container size (households only); businesses must apply, schedule, and pay.
Oregon E-Cycles 7-item/day cap applies per person per site; larger loads may be charged.
MetroPaint — the Portland-area's iconic recycled latex paint brand that operated 1992-2025 — closed at the end of 2025. PaintCare and Metro HHW now handle all leftover paint in the region.
Metro's two transfer stations recorded 61 fires in 2025, 58 caused by batteries thrown in the trash — a key driver of the new state battery EPR law.
Free neighborhood HHW collection events run roughly the last Saturday of each month March-November (skipping July/August).
Recycling Modernization Act curbside changes took effect July 1, 2025: plastic bottle caps OK if screwed on, clean (but greasy) pizza boxes OK.
PaintCare Oregon has ~190+ year-round sites — more than 98% of Oregonians live within 15 miles of one; most are independent paint stores and hardware stores.
Free Geek Portland is a community institution — founded in 1999, it has refurbished and distributed over 60,000 computers to the community. It's a donation drop-off point for legacy electronics that still have reuse value.
Oregon was the first state in the US to pass paint stewardship legislation (2009) and the first to launch PaintCare (July 2010) — its model was emulated by 11 other states and DC.
Portland's curbside recycling is bi-weekly (alternating weeks with garbage), and the city has one of the highest recycling participation rates in the country thanks to educational outreach and the Recycling Modernization Act funding.

For general battery recycling info — what's recyclable, how to prepare items, where the materials go — see the national battery recycling guide. For all Portland options, browse battery recycling in Portland.

Sources verified for this guide

Updated · 2026-05-19