According to the Chittenden Solid Waste District, here's what happened when someone tossed a small container of household hazardous waste into their recycling bin. One container of household hazardous waste shut down CSWD's recycling facility for a day in late April and sent several people to the hospital.UPDATE: The substance was bear repellant, according to Vermont Emergency Management.
- 42recycling facility staffers had to be evacuated from the recycling facility. Nearby businesses were also evacuated.
- 25staffers experienced symptoms including watery eyes, vomiting, and trouble breathing.
- 13staffers were taken to the UVM Medical Center.
- 6different local and state emergency response teams were involved in managing the incident.
- The entire facilitywas shut down for the rest of the day, requiring haulers to find alternative ways of handling the recyclables they had collected that day.
Fortunately, no staffers were seriously injured, and all were able to return to work the next day and the facility is back up and running.
Whoever tossed the hazardous container into the recycling bin may have been trying to do the right thing, there were three things wrong with the choice they made:
- The container was not empty (only empty containers can be recycled).
- The container held hazardous material (no hazardous material containers -- such as those with the words Warning! Caution! Danger! and Toxic! can be recycled.).
- They didn't call our hotline (872-8111) if they were at all in doubt over whether it could be recycled.
When you're deciding whether to toss that empty can of pesticide or other hazardous container into your recycling bin, STOP a moment, and think about the people who sort your recyclables at our recycling facility -- and then do the right thing with that container:
- Do NOT throw it in your recycling bin!Containers of hazardous materials are NOT recyclable. Even if a can seems empty, there is always residual material left inside that can pose a danger. The container can be damaged, leaking its contents, potentially exposing everyone who handles that container.
- If it's household a hazardous substance from your house:
- Dispose of empty containers in your trash.
- Bring containers with material left in them to CSWD'sEnvironmental Depot(1011 Airport Parkway, South Burlington; Wed-Fri 8-2; Sat8-3:30), or to theRoverwhen it comes to your town this summer. Household hazardous waste includes cleaners, automotive fluids, etc. Visit ourhousehold hazardous wastepage for a full list.
- If it's hazardous waste from a business,call the Environmental Depot at(802) 865-4663to find out if you need to bring containers -- empty or containing leftovers -- to the Depot.
Most importantly, if you have any questions about how to dispose of anything -- hazardous or non-hazardous -- please don't guess!Help keep our staff safe and give us a call at(802) 872-8111, email[email protected], or visit our website atcswd.net. We're here to help!