Household Hazardous Waste: Overview
Household hazardous waste (HHW) are derived from household products that contain corrosive, toxic, ignitable, or reactive ingredients. Such materials require special care when being discarded. Examples of these products include lamps, paints, cleaners, oils, batteries, and pesticides.
Improper disposal of household hazardous wastes can include:
- Pouring chemicals down the drain
- Draining oil on the ground or in drains
- Washing pesticides into storm sewers
- Putting bulbs and batteries in with general trash
HHW Collection Program
A household hazardous waste collection program can be a combination of 3 popular collection methods: permanent collection facilities, special collection events, and local business collection sites.
Permanent collection or exchange facilities collect HHW year-round. Some facilities have exchange areas where individuals can both leave and take unused or leftover products such as paints, solvents, pesticides, cleaning and automotive products.
Special collection days are designed for communities that do not have a year-round collection system for HHW. These events allow residents to drop off their stored HHW materials at a public drop-off site, and for a municipality to collect and to transport hazardous materials to nearby facilities.
Local business collection sites can be used if a community has neither permanent collection sites nor the ability to organize a special collection day. These arrangements work well for specific product types that correlate with a company's product offering; such as hardwaqre stores as drop-off sites for used light bulbs, or auto mechanics' garages for used motor oil.
Curbside collection of household hazardous waste is rarely seen due to the higher costs and technical requirements associated with handling, in-transit sorting, and transporting.
RATIONALE
The EPA estimates that Americans generate 1.6 million tons of HHW per year, and the average home can accumulate as much as 100 pounds of HHW in storage. Without a designated collection program, residents do not have a way to safely dispose of these potentially dangerous products.
EFFORT REQUIRED
Implementation of a household hazardous waste collection program will depend largely on the existing infrastructure of a city and the scope of the program. If there are permanent collection facilities within the region that can support the addition of these materials, then it is a simple expansion of services. If the program only intends to use special collection days or local businesses to collect and ship materials for processing, then transport costs will be greater, but upfront costs and staffing will be minimal. But if new facilities must be built, and staff brought on, such a program could require major effort and investment.
BENEFIT
- Reduces the risk of contaminating septic tanks or wastewater treatment systems when chemicals are poured down drains or toilets
- Allows citizens to safely dispose of their hazardous waste without great financial cost or time requirements.
- Reduction and recycling of HHW conserves natural resources and energy that would be expended in the production of more products.
- Reuse of hazardous household products can save money and extend the utility of existing hazardous substances.
RISKS
- Physical injury to sanitation workers handling the materials
- The potential capital costs for transport vehicles and processing facilities
- The requirement of community participation for long-term viability.
ACTION AGENT(S)
- Environmental Management Department
- Solid Waste Management/Recycling Department
- Public Works Department
COST
Program costs can vary widely across the country. The following data are from Santa Clara County and are suggestive of program costs:
- Funding: $1.85 - $2.22 per ton (landfill billing)
- Fixed Cost: $1.68 - $1.77 per household (6 program staff, facility and vehicle leasing costs, office rent, admin overhead, legal counsel, publicity, training, equipment)
- Variable Cost: $76 per car (actual labor, waste disposal, transportation, and other services provided at events and facilities — calculated annually)
The program served about 3% of the population and experienced an annual surplus of $710,583.
The used water from a home, community, farm, or industry that contains dissolved or suspended matter. Not fit for human consumption.The collection, reprocessing, marketing, and use of materials that were diverted or recovered from the solid waste stream.The bulb or tube portion of an electric lighting device.The ability or potential of a physical body to do work. The most common forms of energy are heat, light, mechanical (moving parts), and electrical.
