I’m not buying the environmental impact of lead acid batteries as described in this article. Most retailers charge you a core fee if you don’t turn in your old battery. And the cost of lead is so high that recycling the old battery makes economic sense.
In recent years I saw a community lake drained for dam repair. I saw about 10 or 12 car/motorcycle batteries in a 200 sq foot area of mud near a pier. I don’t know the age of the batteries nor when ‘core charges’ started but many people seem lazy about disposing batteries for some reason.