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County holding hazardous waste collection day

Donna GrayPost Independent Staff

Pack up your old paint cans and gather up those dried up tubes of hobby glue and the old batteries in the corner of the garage. The Garfield County landfill near Rifle is holding its semiannual household hazardous waste disposal day on Saturday, Sept. 23, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. It’s free, although a donation is appreciated. And every single bit of it is recycled.Hazardous materials are those that cause irritation, are corrosive, flammable, toxic or reactive and are also regulated by state and federal requirements for handling.Besides the items listed above, the landfill will also take any old unidentifiable stuff you have lying around because there will be a chemist on site who can figure out what it is, said landfill technician Janey Dyke.There are also a number of items that the landfill won’t take, including biological medical waste, tires, freon (used in refrigerators and air conditioners), contaminated soils, asbestos, radioactive waste “or illegal drug lab waste,” Dyke said.The county holds the household hazardous waste days twice a year, in spring and fall.”We felt there is a need for it in Garfield County because each municipality had one for their citizens,” Dyke said. The waste is collected and processed by Clean Harbors, which holds similar disposal days across the country and recycles the material. “They have a special state permit to transport hazardous material,” Dyke said. The material is taken to the company’s warehouse in Denver and then sent out to various companies for recycling. For example, Sherwin Williams, the paint company, takes used paint, filters it and then remakes it, Dyke said.”Nothing goes into the landfill, it’s all recycled,” she said.Anyone wishing to participate should call Dyke ahead of time for an appointment, 625-8601. Each customer is allowed 15 gallons or 20 pounds of waste. “Do not mix products together, and haul it in a sturdy cardboard box or bin,” she said. If you want the box back, let unloading folks know.Crews will be on hand to unload the waste, which will take about five minutes.”It goes real fast, there’s hardly any wait at all,” she said.Contact Donna Gray: 945-8515, ext. 510dgray@postindependent.com

Here’s a list of what you can bring to the landfill for hazardous waste disposal: paint, varnish, thinners, anti-freeze, used motor oil, kerosene, transmission fluid, pesticides, herbicides, solvents, poisons, batteries and hobby chemicals.


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