Talkin’ Trash

By Chris McCullough

Household Hazardous Waste

Everyone has it.  No one wants it in their garbage.  What do you do with it?

First of all what is it?  Almost every home contains hazardous products, or products that can harm human health or the environment if improperly handled. These are products used in cleaning, home improvements, automobile maintenance, lawn and garden care, hobbies, and a variety of other tasks. 

Each year, thousands of people are injured by exposure or accident involving hazardous household waste or HHW.  Because of the dangers they pose, these products require special awareness, handling, and disposal.  In order to protect health and environment, every consumer should know how to properly use, store, and dispose of HHW. 

The key is to avoid purchasing anything that may be difficult to dispose of.  However when we have leftover toxics, try to find someone to use the remaining material.  It is preferred to use the substance as it was intended rather than process it for disposal.  If you still have materials left over, contain the materials for long term storage in air tight containers and identify the contents well.

Since Douglas County does not charge for general garbage disposal, there aren’t any funds available for the development of a HHW collection facility.  This poses a problem since we cannot dispose of any liquids into the landfill as per state law.  The primary disposal option is to deliver the toxics to the Eugene HHW collection site by appointment.  You can do this by calling 541-682-4120 Monday-Friday.

The only other option is coming up this month on Saturday, May 31^st from 10am to 2pm at Yoncalla High School.  The City of Yoncalla has qualified for a grant to put on a special one day HHW collection event.  There, a professional contractor will be accepting all sorts of HHW from paint to florescent light bulbs.  You can bring aerosol cans, antifreeze, chemicals, batteries, fuels, pesticides, insecticides, thermometers, mercury, and sharps containers.   Simply keep any products in their original containers if possible, do not mix any products, and keep them away from any passengers while transporting.  Do not bring any explosives or radioactive waste.  This grant is made possible by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.  The City of Yoncalla has partnered with DEQ, Douglas County Public Works, and North Douglas Fire & EMS.

For more information about this event contact Kathy at the City of Yoncalla at 541-849-2152 

By recycling our waste through the opportunities that abound, you can save money and precious natural resources and energy. If you want to know more about waste reduction, contact me today. Together we can Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle and Trash Douglas County Less!

www.recyclepower.org

440-4350