AN incident in which an electric car burst into flames on a St Helier street has highlighted a serious lack of provision for the disposal of hazardous batteries.
Although firefighters were quickly on hand to extinguish the blaze on the hybrid Mini, owner Alex Williams quickly learned that this didn’t signal the end of his problems.
The government has described the situation as “complex”, saying that it is working towards finding a long-term solution.
Mr Williams said that he was told by both the police and fire service that in spite of the risk of the battery re-igniting, there was no designated safe place where the vehicle could be stored.
The vehicle was towed to Mr Williams’s home, where it was stored on the driveway overnight in spite of the risk.
“I was stuck in the middle, with the police and fire service saying it was each other’s problem, and wasn’t given any alternative, and in the end spent the night elsewhere because there was no guarantee there might not be another fire or an explosion,” he said.
After contacting his insurance company the following day, Mr Williams was able to arrange for the vehicle, which was declared to be a write-off, to be taken away. However, he said he was concerned about the speed at which the fire had escalated, as well as the situation in which there were increasing numbers of hybrid and all-electric vehicles in the Island without any safe means of disposal.
“It was less than two minutes between first noticing smoke and realising that that the car was in flames,” he said.
“There’s been a definite move towards electric vehicles in terms of them being marketed as better for the environment, but it doesn’t seem like this has been matched by a solution for what happens at the end of the ‘lifecycle’ of the car.”
The concern was reflected by a senior manager at one of the Island’s larger auto dealers, who told the JEP: “It’s a difficult situation and there needs to be a solution found – these vehicles have been sold in Jersey for well over a decade and inevitably some of the older models reach the point where it’s not economical to keep repairing them and the owner is looking to trade them in.”
It is understood that while there are suitable compounds in the UK, and also in Guernsey, safety provisions restrict the ability to transport vehicles and batteries away from Jersey as freight.
In a statement, the Infrastructure and Environment Department described electric vehicle battery disposal as “a complex and highly regulated area that requires specialist handling, transport and processing arrangements”.
The department added: “Where batteries have been involved in an incident such as a fire, additional safety controls are required before they can be moved or exported.
“Public and environmental safety remains our priority as we continue to develop these arrangements.
“The government is working with industry partners to establish a fully compliant long-term solution for end-of-life electric and hybrid vehicles.
“We have already successfully completed two pilot shipments of EV batteries this year.”
The department added that there had been no contact with Mr Williams, meaning it could not comment on the specific incident, but suggested that anyone with an end-of-life vehicle in need of disposal should contact climateemergency@gov.je for more information.
