Nebraska Medicine and UNMC are partnering with the Omaha Fire Department to give batteries second life through a new program that recycles 10,000 pounds of discarded batteries a year. The initiative involves helping to identify batteries that still have significant power, which is being used in SMOKE DETECTors. The program also allows people across the hospital and university to sort out batteries for free. The process involves a BATTERY RECYCLER, which costs money and is wasteful. UNMC has donated 250 pounds of BATTERIES since the program began this year and is helping out the fire department. The partnership is also providing free smoke detector batteries for the smoke detector.