Consumer Awareness Versus Sustainable Practices Related to the End-Of-Life of Batteries in Poland

Processes and phenomena known as PLM (Product Lifecycle Management) operate around us constantly even if we are not aware of it. The paper presents the market of portable primary batteries in the European Union (EU) with particular emphasis on the stream of used primary alkaline cells in Poland. This paper also draws attention to the fact that this big EU country does not have in its area a whole recycling process for used cells of the first type of zinc-carbon, zinc-manganese or zinc-air, which in the stream of chemical waste energy sources is still growing. Awareness of the importance of being able to influence and control this process allows us to extend measurable benefits resulting from, for example, prolonging the product’s life. In this purpose a fragment of the end of life of primary cells was examined in the studies. The time from when the batteries are considered by users to be used up until they are disposed of by the organization or company responsible for doing so was studied. Analysis of the state of charge of batteries intended for recycling, as well as of the effectiveness of prosocial activities in terms of sustainable product management was done. Striving to achieve it has become a worldwide priority. Success in this field depends on a matter of society engagement. Increasing the society’s awareness of the idea of sustainable consumption may be considered a way of shaping households’ activities in the field of saving, investment and consumption. The aim of the analysis was also to present in which way the campaigns can contribute to sustainable development and how their positive impact should be properly assessed. After analysing the literature, an attempt to independently check which batteries are the most popular on the market in Poland was made. The most popular batteries were used as a material for analyses.