A young environmentalist has urged China's commercial sector to recall used batteries by adding a refundable 20-percent to their price tags that can be used as a fund for a proper, centralized disposal.

Chen Jun, 26, has outlined his fair and reasonable proposal in a 20,000-character document he submitted recently to the Jilin Provincial Environmental Protection Bureau in northeast China.

"An AA battery costs 2.2 yuan (US$0.26)," Chen explained. "It can actually be sold for 2.7 yuan (US$0.33), and the consumers can get the extra 50 cents back when they bring the used battery back to the store."

Under such circumstances few people would throw away waste batteries, as "no one would carelessly throw away his own money", Chen said.

"This is a very good, acceptable idea and we'll take it into consideration," said a leading official with the provincial environmental protection bureau named Bi.

Chen, a resident of the provincial capital Changchun, has worked as a busboy and waiter at local restaurants since he finished junior high schooling. The avid environmentalist is keen on a host of social issues.

Environmentalists say that the mercury contained in a small button cell can contaminate 600,000 liters of water -- nearly all that is essential to sustain a person throughout his life.

Some experts say they have exaggerated the harm, and that the small amount of mercury in batteries is not enough to pose any real threat. But the majority believe waste batteries -- even mercury-free ones -- should be recycled in order to protect the environment and make the maximum use of resources such as zinc, copper, steel and lead.

In a recent survey conducted by a noted college professor in Beijing, 94.53 percent of the 7,000 respondents said they would like to send their used batteries to a recycling center, even if they did not get paid for doing so.

(Xinhua News Agency January 8, 2004)