Top Reasons to Recycle Recalled Airbags
Did You Know?
For the last three decades, airbags have played a vital role in saving the lives of vehicle occupants. According to the NHTSA, from 1987 to 2017frontal airbags alone have saved 50,457 lives.
The massive Takata airbag recall and subsequent smaller recalls created tens of millions of faulty airbags in the US that need to be disposed of. Such a large volume creates a serious environmental issue and recycling them is the only justifiable option.
Why Recycle Recalled Airbags?
Most airbags contain sodium azide for generating the gas that spontaneously fills the bag in the event of a crash. Sodium azide is toxic in isolation, dangerous to inhale, and can burn exposed skin. After deployment, it gets converted into harmless nitrogen gas. But residue is left behind.It can lead to incidental exposure to untrained workers. Disposal of airbags near water can turn the residual sodium azide into hydrazoic acid, which can make groundwater toxic and hazardous for everyone.
Additionally, faulty recalled airbags which contain ammonium nitrate as the propellant carry the risk of respiratory tract irritation, causing stinging of the nose, eyes, and skin. Therefore, responsibly disposing of deployed or un-deployed/faulty airbags is necessary to protect people and the environment. If you need to dispose of airbags, find an airbag recycling program that offers multiple benefits for your business (your employees and your customers) and the environment.
Here Are Some Top Reasons to Recycle Recalled Airbags
1. Recycling Airbags is Mandatory as per Federal EPA Regulations.
It is illegal to dispose of airbags and other restraint devices that have not been deployed or are faulty. EPA also prohibits dealerships or collision centers from deploying airbags to make them safe for trash disposal. You must either recycle them or get a legal permit to dispose of them as toxic and hazardous waste.
2. Decreases Your Liability
If you are disposing of recalled airbags improperly, you risk facing potentially devastating liability issues. From hefty fines, lawsuits to a public relations nightmare, anything can happen if such recalled airbags cause injury or death in the secondary market. To eliminate such risks and reduce your liability, you must recycle them.
3. Allows You to Be Environmentally Responsible
Whether it is sodium azide or ammonium nitrate, both the materials used as propellants inside airbags are hazardous. They are toxic to land and groundwater. Recycling the airbags is the only way to ensure the toxic material does not land up in landfills or contaminate a water source.
4. Enables You to Manage Increasing Number of Airbags
Nowadays, modern vehicles come with a staggering number of airbags (as many as 12) — side-impact airbags, curtain airbags, head-protection airbags, front center airbags, knee airbags, and more. Why bear the risk and mess of stockpiling large quantities of faulty airbags at your premises? Partner with an airbag recycling company that will be managing the project from quote to shipping to disposal to paperwork trail.
5. Cost-Effective and Hassle-free
As a dealer or collision center, managing faulty/non-deployed/deployed or end-of-life airbags always require precision handling. Your best bet is to off-load this project to experts who are in the business of carefully managing specific types of industrial waste. Many of them also recycle and re-use as many pieces of the airbags as possible. For example, elements of recycled airbags can benefit other industries like fertilizers, steel mills, auto parts, and other types of factories. Partnering with airbag disposal and recycling company is a cost-effective approach. It will provide you with a fair-market price and your partner will deliver hassle-free management of your recalled airbags.
Why Work with CWE for Recycling Recalled Airbags?
CWE is an established, trusted, economical, and environmentally friendly airbag disposal solution in the US. Our destruction process can break down the inflators and recycle or re-use nearly 100% of the residuals like ammonium nitrate.
We have the permits to process up to 17 million airbag inflators per year. We have already processed nearly 5 million airbags and have the resources to handle orders of any size with urgent requirements. Our experienced transporter can smoothly and efficiently get the un-deployed/faulty airbags out of your facility within 24 hours.
We can also help you navigate the complex regulated process of managing the deployed/un-deployed/faulty airbags. Further, we also provide material traceability and all necessary certificates as proof of disposal to you, adhering to EPA guidelines.
With us, you can become environmentally responsible and sustainably manage your recalled airbags.