Household Hazardous Waste

           After our kitchen remodel, I had the idea to reuse our old kitchen sink in our basement as a slop sink. This would have kept the cleaning of my work tools and paintbrushes out of our brand new kitchen sink. Unfortunately, the old kitchen sink still sits, unused in my basement collecting an odd mixture of rust, spider webs, and dust. 

        Because of a small leak in our basement, I needed to move the sink, spider webs and all, to the far side of the basement. I opened the doors to the metal cabinet below it and realized that all the old household cleaners we had used in the past were still there waiting for disposal. Bottles of drain cleaner, furniture polish, multipurpose cleaner and various cans of aerosol products were stuffed in an old laundry basket.

            We had placed them there, thinking that we would figure out how to dispose of them. In the meantime, life happened, and like the sink above, they had collected their own layers of dust. I pulled them out, placing them in rows like soldiers marching off to battle.

            In our society, household synthetic detergents are used without a second thought. We use them to wash our clothes, clean our dishes, and wipe down our counters. However, research has shown that synthetic detergents are toxic for humans and the environment. The chemicals used in household cleaners can cause allergies, asthma, skin and eye irritation and increase the risk for certain cancers (Kassem, 2010). These chemicals if not disposed of properly can also affect our environment.

               Unfortunately labeling for these types of products is not as stringent as those used to label our food. Cautions have been added to remind us not to ingest these products, but I am willing to bet that the only sane person who would do drink one of these products is probably under reading age.

         Knowing the possible impact on the environment, I wanted to make sure I disposed of these properly. On the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) website defined Household Hazardous Wastes as  . . .

“Leftover household products that contain corrosive, toxic, ignitable, or reactive ingredients are considered to be “household hazardous waste” or “HHW.” Products, such as paints, cleaners, oils, batteries, and pesticides that contain potentially hazardous ingredients require special care when you dispose of them (EPA, 2011).”

                According to the EPA, HHW may cause harm to sanitation workers and/or sewer systems when pour down the drain or may cause harm to our children and pets if left in the house. Although there are no federal laws, stating that HHW cannot be disposed of in the trash, there are state and local regulations of proper disposal (EPA, 2011). Please check with your local waste authority or your states Department of Environmental Protection Agency before disposing of HHW in the trash.

 I returned to the basement with proper disposal procedures from our county’s waste authority. Some of the products could be thrown directly into the trash, as their ingredients did not contain harmful chemicals. (Of course, I recycled the bottles).  However, most of them had harmful ingredients and had to be disposed of through the counties household hazardous waste disposal collection site. Unfortunately, the next one is our area is not until the fall, so I have carefully stored all the products in a lockable bin until they can be disposed of properly.

           I was frustrated by this, I believe it should be easier for us to protect our families and the environment. The best measure of protecting our family is to stop using harmful chemicals in our cleaning products in the first place. Luckily, we live in a time and place where non-synthetic cleaners are available either through the web or at your local grocery. Alternatively, you can make your own – see my blog about how to make your own drain cleaner.

Here are some websites . . .

  1. http://www.gaiam.com/home.do
  2. http://www.purezing.com/home/cleaning/home_cleaning.htm
  3. http://www.seventhgeneration.com/
  4. http://eartheasy.com/live_nontoxic_solutions.htm

 

References:

EPA, (2011) Household hazardous waste. Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved March 17th, 2011 from http://www.epa.gov/wastes/conserve/materials/hhw.htm

Kassem, N. (2010) Allergens and Toxins in Laundry Detergents: Synthetic Ingredients That Are Harmful to People and the Environment http://www.suite101.com/content/allergens-and-toxins-in-laundry-detergents-a216374#ixzz1Gt3p9JmB

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