Hazardous waste accepted at drive
Published 10:30 pm Thursday, September 15, 2016
Have some old paint sitting around in your garage? Pesticides in the shed? Old batteries in the junk drawer? Even an extra mercury-containing thermometer in the medicine cabinet?
You have an opportunity to get rid of all of these things and more during a recycling drive hosted by Keep Suffolk Beautiful this Saturday at Lowe’s, 1216 N. Main St., from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The drive will accept all products deemed “household hazardous waste,” city litter control coordinator Wayne Jones said.
“I get so many calls for things like paint and oil,” he said. The city decided to partner with the Southeastern Public Service Authority to accept household hazardous waste at this event.
The disposal of household hazardous waste will be limited to five gallons of liquid or 75 pounds of solid waste.
Among the many items deemed household hazardous waste are cooking oil, household cleaners and polishes, pool chemicals, automotive liquids such as oil and antifreeze, herbicides and insecticides, rat poison, fertilizer, driveway sealer, propane tanks, lighter fluid, kerosene, aerosol cans, nail polish remover, adhesives, furniture strippers, photographic chemicals, any product containing mercury and batteries of all shapes and sizes, including automotive batteries.
Also being accepted at the drive are tires, electronics, plastic bags, gently used clothing, cardboard, cans, glass containers, plastics No. 1 and 2 and CFL bulbs.
Residents are also invited to bring sensitive documents for shredding, up to a maximum of three paper grocery bags full.
“I bring them in every time, because I get so many calls,” Jones said of the document shredding company, Shred-It. “So many people find that valuable.”
In addition, the drive will partner with the Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia to collect nonperishable food as well as baby food and baby wipes.
“We’re building on the success of the April drive, where we collected over 400 pounds of food,” Jones said.
The city’s mosquito control division also will be on site to answer questions and hand out Mosquito Dunks, which can be placed in stagnant water to kill mosquito larvae.
Jones said the city especially thanks Lowe’s for hosting the drive in its parking lot.
“They make things very easy,” he said.
Goodwill and TFC are also partners in the event.
The drive is for Suffolk residents only, and identification will be required for those bringing tires and household hazardous waste.
For more information on the drive, call 514-7604 or email littercontrol@suffolkva.us.