You can drop off household hazardous waste in Oak Ridge on Saturday, September 17.
The collection will be from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the Oak Ridge Central Services Complex at 100 Woodbury Lane, behind the Kmart shopping center.
The Household Hazardous Waste Collection is sponsored by Anderson County Solid Waste Management and Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. It’s a state-sponsored event and open to any Tennessee resident. Residents of other counties are also welcome, a press release said.
Household hazardous waste is considered to be anything generated in the home that has a hazardous property. A material is considered hazardous if it is flammable, corrosive, toxic, or reactive with heat or contact with metals.
Household hazardous waste material is considered flammable, toxic, reactive, and/or corrosive, and should not be placed with regular garbage. Typical items to dispose of include cleaning fluids, pesticides, mercury thermometers and thermostats, fluorescent lamps, lithium and button batteries, aerosols, adhesives, medications, brake fluid, swimming pool chemicals, paint thinner, and used needles in sturdy containers.
Items not accepted include ammunition, explosives, alkaline batteries, paint, electronics, and any empty containers that should be disposed in normal trash.
While household waste may be disposed for free, there is a cost for disposal of what is known as conditionally exempt small quantity generator waste. That is waste from non-household sources such as businesses, schools, farms, churches, etc. An appointment is also necessary. Call (615) 643-3170 to request a price quote and schedule an appointment.
Many counties and municipalities meet the needs of local residents by providing collection of batteries, oil, paint, antifreeze, and electronic scrap—or BOPAE, as it is sometimes called. When handled correctly, these BOPAE materials are minimally hazardous, but inappropriate for collection at household hazardous waste events. Contact your local city or county solid waste department to find BOPAE collection sites in your area.
When transporting materials to the site, place containers in sturdy boxes lined with newspaper to prevent spills and cross-contamination in the trunk of a car or back of a truck. Be sure to keep materials away from children and pets. Materials should be kept in the original containers whenever possible. If not, place each waste in a separate plastic container with a secure lid and label its contents.
The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation’s mobile household hazardous waste collection service will be in Anderson County on Sept. 17. Since the inception of the mobile household hazardous waste collection service in 1993, more than 322,000 households have properly disposed of more than 21 million pounds of material, a press release said.
“It is our goal to make disposing of household hazardous waste convenient and reliable for Tennessee citizens, and at no cost,” said Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation Commissioner Bob Martineau. “Every spring and fall, we roll out these events statewide to ensure unneeded waste is not posing a risk to citizens.”
For more information about the Saturday collection event, contact Anderson County Solid Waste Management or Geoff Trabalka at (865) 463-6845.
For more information on the household hazardous waste mobile collection service, call (800) 287-9013 or visit http://www.tn.gov/environment/topic/sw-mm-household-hazardous-waste-program.
See this flyer for more information: hazardous-waste-collection-event-9-2016.
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