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<\/a><\/p>\nFor Orange County residents, household hazardous waste disposal is free. In fact, it\u2019s free at four different collection centers located throughout the County: there\u2019s one in Anaheim, Huntington Beach, Irvine and San Juan Capistrano. Situated at the corner of East La Palma Avenue and North Blue Gum Street, the Anaheim HHWCC is the closest collection center for Fullerton and North Orange County residents. In late December, I had a chance to tour the Anaheim facility and interview\u00a0 Thomas Koutroulis, Director for OC Waste & Recycling, and Jesus Perez, Household Hazardous Waste Programs Manager, about what\u2019s considered\u00a0 household hazardous waste, what residents can and cannot bring to the County\u2019s HHW centers, how the collection centers operate, and how residents can get free paint, cleaning supplies and other items from the County\u2019s material exchange program.<\/p>\n
Putting on a bright orange vest so that I didn\u2019t get hit by an incoming car, I walked with Jesus Perez through the\u00a0Anaheim\u00a0waste collection center,\u00a0where the\u00a0various\u00a0hazardous materials were boxed up in different containers.\u00a0I also rode with Francine Bangert, Public Communications Officer at OC Waste & Recycling, as she waited in a long line of cars near the center\u2019s closing time to dispose of a bucket of batteries.\u00a0Buckets are free and available at any of the County\u2019s household hazardous waste collection centers.\u00a0Attendants wearing blue gloves asked her what city she was coming from\u00a0before taking\u00a0the\u00a0batteries\u00a0and sending\u00a0her on her way.<\/p>\n
\u201cImproperly disposed of household hazardous waste poses risks to both the environment and the workers who handle it,\u201d said Koutroulis. \u201cLeftover household products that contain corrosive, toxic, ignitable, or reactive ingredients are considered to be household hazardous waste. Products, such as paints, cleaning solvents, oils, batteries, and pesticides that contain potentially hazardous ingredients require special care when you dispose of them.\u201d<\/p>\n Koutroulis and Perez explained that improper disposal of household hazardous waste can include pouring it down the drain, onto the ground, into storm sewers, or, in some cases, putting it out with the trash. I learned that while the dangers of these types of disposal methods might not be immediately obvious, improper disposal of these wastes can pollute the environment and pose a threat to human health.<\/p>\n \u201cWe don\u2019t accept commercial hazardous waste here, and so it\u2019s just residential\u00a0household hazardous\u00a0waste\u00a0 that we accept, but we also take e-waste and sharps as well,\u201d said Jesus Perez, who manages the County\u2019s HHW programs.\u00a0\u201cFor e-waste, remember to remove data before disposal.\u201d\u00a0Sharps refers to hypodermic needles, pen needles, intravenous needles, and lancets.<\/p>\n Perez\u00a0stressed\u00a0that residents are not allowed to bring any explosive devices, ammunition, marine flares\u00a0 or\u00a0other\u00a0incendiary devices.\u00a0Koutroulis told me\u00a0not\u00a0to\u00a0 bring\u00a0medical waste (outside of sharps),\u00a0asbestos, biological waste, unused pharmaceuticals and controlled substances, radioactive materials, tires, high-pressure cylinders, such as acetylene, oxygen, and air tanks,\u00a0or\u00a0chemically treated wood items to HHW collection centers.<\/p>\n Koutroulis said, \u201cWhen coming to a household hazardous waste center, it\u2019s a very simple process. Residents place their household hazardous waste in the trunk of their vehicle. As they come into the facility, they follow the signs and directions of the employees and staff on site. As they pull up, they will stop their car, simply open their trunk. They will need to provide the city from which the material is coming, so that info can be logged. And then the attendant will take the HHW out of their vehicle, while the resident stays in the convenience of their car\u2026 Once it\u2019s removed, the attendant will shut the trunk and let the resident go on their way.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe also have a materials exchange program,\u201d said Perez. \u201cPeople are cleaning out their garages during the holidays or\u00a0over\u00a0the weekends, and they bring in a container of paint or cleaning solvent, it gets inspected,\u00a0and if it meets a certain standard, it can actually go on the shelf for the material exchange program.\u00a0Other residents, as they come to drop off\u00a0hazardous material,\u00a0have access to this free material, whether it\u2019s paint or cleaning agent, and can take and use it for free.\u201d<\/p>\n Through OCWR\u2019s material exchange program, I learned that residents can choose up to five items per week from a selection of partially used containers of household, yard and car care products. For more information, call 714-834-4000 or visit\u00a0oclandfills.com\/hazardous-waste<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>\u201cThe County of Orange started the household hazardous waste collection facilities in the early Nineties. Part of that was due to population growth and increasing regulations on\u00a0how waste is managed\u2026So we have landfills in the County that we manage and oversee, which handle all residential waste. However, a fraction of that waste\u00a0cannot come into the\u00a0landfill and needs to be managed properly, so that\u2019s why the facilities were opened: to divert household hazardous waste to these facilities to be disposed of\u00a0or recycled,\u201d explained\u00a0Koutroulis.<\/p>\n<\/a>\u201cWe have an agreement with Clean Harbors, which is our contractor that actually oversees the facilities and ensures the\u00a0right documentation for receiving the\u00a0waste\u00a0and makes sure it\u00a0is segregated and it goes to a few different locations,\u201d explained Koutroulis. \u201cIn some cases, it will go to a Class 1 landfill, which is basically designed to receive and maintain hazardous waste to perpetuity, and it has special permits. It can go to an incinerator to be destroyed, since some of the chemicals are destroyed by incineration, and in some cases, they\u00a0can be recycled. One thing that we do recycle here are batteries and paint.\u00a0So, some of the material that does come in can be recycled.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anaheim\u2019s HHW\u00a0Collection\u00a0 Center\u00a0and all\u00a0other\u00a0Orange County HHWC locations are open\u00a0from 9 am to 3 pm,\u00a0Tuesday through Saturday, and closed on major holidays and rainy days.<\/p>\n