The concern is not new, but it has been growing. Organizations such as the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) have been warning for years about the dangers of lithium-ion batteries, especially when they travel in hand luggage. And with good reason: a simple short circuit can trigger a difficult-to-control fire, stemming from problems such as thermal runaway in lithium-ion batteries . Added to this is the problem of waste management, where these batteries become a major headache for recycling plants.
Risk in air transport: restrictions and recommendations
The latest warning came on August 9, when Swiss flight LX52, en route from Zurich to Boston, had to divert to Dublin after smoke was detected in the cabin. The source: an external battery. The Airbus A330-300 landed without incident, and the 206 passengers were rebooked on another aircraft, but the scare brought to the forefront a growing problem. According to EASA, the number of incidents related to power banks has increased, and for this reason, the agency published a series of recommendations in May 2025: keep them always accessible, do not use them to charge other devices, and monitor them during the flight. IATA, for its part, estimates that 44% of travelers carry a power bank, and even worse, 45% mistakenly believe they can check it in. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has also taken action: on March 27, 2026, it approved new specifications limiting the number of batteries to two per passenger and prohibiting their recharging on board. Japan had already taken this step in April, banning their use on aircraft. Faced with this situation, several airlines have tightened their policies. Swiss and Lufthansa Group, Emirates, Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways, Cathay Pacific, Korean Air, and Virgin Australia have imposed restrictions ranging from prohibiting their use altogether to requiring them to be stored under the seat in front. Most agree that they should not be stored in the overhead compartment, so that any smoke signals can be detected in time.
Illegal storage: the case of Segovia
On land, the problem is also very much present. The High Court of Justice of Castile and León has upheld the conviction of a resident of Otero de Herreros, in Segovia, who turned his home into a clandestine storage facility for lithium-ion batteries. Operation 'Canaleja' by the Civil Guard, carried out in 2023, resulted in the largest seizure of this type of waste in Spain and Europe: some 45 tons of batteries, although only 30.998 kilos of raw waste were ultimately counted. The man stored them in various rooms of the house and the basement, many deteriorated and mixed with other materials, without any safety measures. The defense argued that the batteries were still functional and that he wanted them for a lithium battery project for photovoltaic self-consumption inverters, but the court did not believe him. For the judges, the fact that they had been discarded by their previous owners and were stored without authorization makes them hazardous waste. Furthermore, the fire risk was obvious: such a large concentration of batteries in a residential area could cause serious damage, the emission of toxic gases, and contamination of the soil and groundwater. The sentence, which can still be appealed, imposes 18 months in prison, a fine of €2.340, a 20-month ban on working with hazardous waste, and the obligation to pay for the removal and treatment of the material.
The danger also lies in recycling
But it's not just in the air or in illegal storage facilities. Lithium batteries are also a headache for recycling plants. In San Francisco, the company RethinkWaste suffered a fire in 2016 that required 100 firefighters to control. The plant was out of service for four months, 80 employees had to be laid off, and the insurance policy skyrocketed from $180.000 to $3,1 million in two years. The head of the agency, Joe La Mariana, explains that these fires are especially treacherous: they can't be extinguished with conventional methods, they burn at extremely high temperatures, and the battery has to be isolated and allowed to burn out. His organization continues to respond to incidents of this type every month, similar to a fire at a lithium battery recycling plant . The problem is that many consumers throw batteries in the trash or recycling bin without realizing they are creating a ticking time bomb. Often, they don't even know how to remove the battery from their phone, so they end up disposing of the entire device. That's why both RethinkWaste and Recology are calling for more awareness campaigns and stricter regulations. In California, there are already bills to ban disposable vapes and require manufacturers to be responsible for collecting their batteries. This is a trend that will undoubtedly eventually reach Europe.
In short, lithium batteries are a wonderful technology, but they are not without danger. From air transport to home storage, and even lithium battery recycling , the risks of fire and contamination are real and increasingly visible. European and Spanish authorities have already begun to react, with stricter regulations and exemplary sentences. But the responsibility also lies with us: knowing how to dispose of them correctly and respecting safety instructions can prevent more than one scare. The next time you charge your phone on a plane, remember that that small battery could be the cause of a big problem.
