'Charged Up' for Earth Day

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TO ENVIRONMENTAL AND PHOTO EDITORS:

'Charged Up' for Earth Day

Recycle a Battery, Plant a Tree: Batteries Plus(R) Partners With

American Forests to Restore Trees Lost in Wildfires

WISCONSIN, HARTLAND, Apr. 6 -/E-Wire/-- Batteries Plus, a national retail and business-to-business battery chain, announced a partnership today with American Forests ( www.americanforests.org ), the nation's oldest nonprofit conservation group, to encourage battery recycling and forest restoration through a resourceful campaign to be kicked off on Earth Day, April 22, 2001.

The goal of the joint campaign is to help restore the millions of trees nationwide that were destroyed in the forest fires of 2000, the worst forest fires in the nation in more than 50 years. On Earth Day, Batteries Plus and American Forests are encouraging consumers to take their used, rechargeable and lead-based batteries to the nearest Batteries Plus store for recycling, such as batteries for cordless devices including cell phones, camcorders, etc. as well as car batteries. For every one of these batteries recycled at Batteries Plus, Batteries Plus will plant one tree through American Forests' Wildfire ReLeaf campaign that helps regenerate areas scorched by wildfire.

Through the program, Batteries Plus has committed to sponsoring 20,000 trees, including a financial commitment of $20,000 and related efforts to help educate consumers about the importance of conservation and recycling, an effort particularly needed as it relates to recycling old batteries. In fact, a 1999 survey sponsored by Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation (RBRC) reported that while 95 percent of U.S. households own some type of the 431 million cordless products on the market, only one in six households said they recycle rechargeable batteries.

"In working with organizations such as American Forests, we hope to raise awareness about the importance of restoring our damaged ecosystems as well as the significance of recycling something as small as a battery," said Ron Rezetko, Batteries Plus founder and chairman. "Together, we can make a huge impact on improving the environment."

The Wildfire ReLeaf program is American Forests' new, large-scale tree planting initiative, designed to plant millions of trees in areas scorched by catastrophic wildfires. American Forests has sought the help of individuals, organizations and environmentally-conscious businesses such as Batteries Plus to help, both physically and financially, with the planting of native trees in these forest ecosystems.

Close to 7 million acres of forests across the country burned during last summer's forest fires. Trees planted through the Batteries Plus battery recycling effort in ecologically-sound "Wildfire ReLeaf" project areas will help stabilize hillsides, reduce erosion, protect water quality and provide habitat for threatened fish and wildlife species. At the same time, it creates local jobs and infrastructure important for long-term health of forest eco-systems and communities.

"Batteries Plus is demonstrating the company's commitment to the environment by planting trees to help restore and regenerate areas devastated by wildfires in recent years," said Deborah Gangloff, executive director of American Forests. "By planting 20,000 trees this company will reforest at least 40 acres of land. And with Earth Day fast approaching, this is an excellent example of how an interested and genuinely committed company can effectively help the planet."

Batteries Plus has a long history of participation in the environmental arena, including battery recycling programs promoted heavily during previous Earth Day campaigns. The company also offers free battery recycling services year-round at its nationwide locations. In addition, Batteries Plus helps to minimize landfill refuse on an ongoing basis by replacing batteries in cordless devices that consumers would otherwise render useless and discard, such as razors, portable vacuums, drills, etc.

Batteries Plus offers literally "1000's of Batteries for 1000's of Items.(R)" Stores carry batteries for everything from automobiles, RVs, boats and motorcycles to cellular and cordless phones, camcorders, computers, toys and more. Batteries Plus opened its first store in Green Bay, Wis., in 1988, and today has more than 176 stores in 34 states, with an additional 78 stores currently under development.

Debra Vilchis of Fishman Public Relations for Batteries Plus,

[REDACTED-PHONE], or [REDACTED-EMAIL], or Stevin Westcott of American

Forests, [REDACTED-PHONE] ext. 234, or [REDACTED-EMAIL]

http://www.americanforests.org

http://http://www.batteriesplus.com

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