Toxic Chemicals and Household Hazardous Waste

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May 09, 2008

FOR RESIDENTS

Natural Environment

Toxic Chemicals

	M-F 8am - 4:30 pm
	(952) 924-2500
	Email St. Louis Park

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Toxic Chemicals and Household Hazardous Waste

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Toxic Chemicals and Household Hazardous Waste
We are exposed to toxins and hazardous waste daily in many forms,from the food we eat to the air we breathe. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), only a fraction of the more than 75,000 registered chemicals have gone through complete testing for human health concerns.

Below are links to information on proper handling and disposal of household toxins and hazardous waste and ways to reduce them.
EPA HW Facts and Figures

Americans generate 1.6 million tons of HHW per year.
The average home can accumulate as much as 100 pounds of HHW in the basement and garage and in storage closets.
During the 1980s, many communities started special collection days or permanent collection sites for handling HHW. In 1997, there were more than 3,000 HHW permanent programs and collection events throughout the United States.

Clean Green!
Reduce toxic chemicals in your home, the amount you spend on cleaners and leave your house smelling clean and fresh. Below are just a few ways to clean your house using natural products.

General Cleaner: 1/2 cup baking soda mixed with a liquid vegetable based soap makes a great cleaner for counters (and won't leave scratches), sinks and other surfaces.

Disinfectant and Copper Cleaner: Dip a halved lemon in backing soda and scrub copper and rinse. Or scrub a cutting board clean. Rinse the lemon, cover and refrigerate to reuse until dry.

Disinfectant Spray: 2 cups water, 1/2 cup vinegar and 10 drops of an essential oil like lemon oil or tea tree oil. Spray this onto counters, bathroom, and floors.

Window and Glass Cleaner: Club soda in a spray bottle. Wipe clean.

Furniture Polish: Put olive oil and lemon juice on a clean cloth. Wipe onto wood. Wipe off. Take care not to get onto upholstery.

Hazardous household waste
Don't put batteries, liquid paint, paint thinner, wood preservatives, aerosols, tires, car batteries, used motor oil, household cleaners, anti-freeze, poisons, acids, medical waste, solvents, or flammable or explosive materials in your trash. These can't be included with regular garbage because they pollute groundwater and endanger health.

Bring household batteries to -

Bring car batteries to -

Retail stores that sell car batteries
Full service gas stations that sell batteries.

Bring no more than five gallons of used motor oil to -

Service stations. (Pour motor oil into a plastic container, put the cap on, and bring it to the cash register. You may wish to call ahead to verify that the station will accept motor oil.)

Electronics -

Effective July 1, 2006 electronic products containing a cathode ray tube (CRT), such as TVs and computer monitors, may not be placed in the garbage.

Electronics may contain lead, cadmium or mercury, which are harmful to human health and the environment. Hennepin County residents can take televisions, computers, cell phones, fax machines, personal digital assistants, TVs, VCRs and copiers to either of the Hennepin County Recycling Centers throughout the year.

Call Hennepin County at: (612) 348-3777 for proper disposal of electronics or A to Z how to get rid of it Guide for households.

Paint -

Dry paint can be disposed of with your household refuse. Open the can and let it dry out in a well ventilated area. You can bring liquid paint to a Hennepin County Drop-Off Facility; call (612) 348-3777 for information.

Take other hazardous waste to -

Hennepin County residents may take hazardous waste to one of the drop off facilities.Click here for more information or call 612-348-3777

Did You Know?
If every household in the United States replaced its next bulb or fixture with an ENERGY STAR labeled model, we would save more than 8 billion kWh of energy and the equivalent in air pollution of removing 1.2 million cars from the road. Order bulbs or learn more at Xcel Energy.

Household Hazardous Waste Drop Off Event
Hennepin County and the City of St. Louis Park are sponsoring a spring community collection event for county residents to safely and properly dispose of their unwanted garden and household hazardous wastes. The collection event will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Thursday, June 12 through Saturday, June 14 at: Louisiana Oaks Park (south parking lot), 3500 Louisiana Ave. S. Items are accepted from households only, business waste cannot be accepted.

Call Hennepin County Environmental Services at (612) 348-3777 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, for a more complete list of what is accepted and what is not accepted at the collection or click here for more information.

How to dispose of prescription medicine
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency recommends the following disposal procedure:
1) Keep medication in its original container, obliterating the patient's name on prescription medications.
2) Make the medication unusable by adding water (to pills or capsules) or salt or a strong powdered spice (to liquids) or by wrapping blister packs in duct tape.
3) Wrap the container in tape or hide it in an empty food container.
4) Discard in your household trash. The bottles cannot be recycled.
Informational Flyer: Pharmaceutical Waste

Protect children from diesel fumes.
In May 2002, Minnesota adopted legislation to protect the health and safety of children from harmful diesel emissions. This law calls for schools to reduce the unnecessary idling of school buses in front of schools, and reroute bus parking zones away from air-intake vents (or if necessary, relocate the air-intake vents). Click here for more information.