With people spending more time at home and packing up and moving at a rapid rate, many may be looking to get rid of old household hazardous waste.
Saturday, you can make sure those items and old electronic devices, get in the right hands at the final HazWaste Central collection of 2020.
Common items like old paint, gas, and pesticides may be collecting dust in your garage, but when it comes time to get rid of them, it's critical to the environment that you do it the right way.
“It can poison the environment overall whether it’s the ground, animals, just overall pollution,” said Lori Vitagliano, the organizer of HazWaste Central. “So we really need to do the right thing and properly dispose of these chemicals.”
Those substances are a threat to more than just the environment.
“If these items are disposed of at the curb, they pose a dangerous situation for the collector,” Vitagliano said.
Children and pets can also be put in harm's way if these dangerous chemicals are improperly stored around your home. So it’s best just to get rid of them the right way. If you aren’t sure what qualifies as hazardous, check the label.
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“Those warning labels can be toxic, poison, flammable, there’s a corrosive,” Vitagliano said.
During the 30 years the Regional Water Authority has been operating HazWaste Central for the Greater New Haven area, they have collected nearly 3 million gallons of household hazardous waste.
For the first time this Saturday, you can also get rid of old electronics like TVs, computers, and old telephones.
Because of COVID-19, HazWaste Central has put extra safety measures in place.
“One of those practices is that residents need to pre-register and do that from their home computer or their smartphone.”
From there it’s as easy as driving up and dropping off the hazardous items, which will be properly disposed of right on site.
“This is something that the Regional Water Authority feels strongly about and our commitment to sustainability,” said Vitagliano.
Residents of the following towns can take advantage of this free service from 9 a.m. until noon on Saturday, October 31: Bethany, Branford, Cheshire, East Haven, Fairfield, Guilford, Hamden, Madison, Meriden, Milford, New Haven, North Branford, North Haven, Orange, Wallingford, West Haven and Woodbridge.
