Many jobs around the home require the use of products containing hazardous components. Some of these products are commonly found in our suburban residences: oil-based paints, stains and varnishes; paint thinners and solvents; pesticides and herbicides; household cleaners; aerosol spray products; rechargeable batteries; mercury-containing products such as thermometers, thermostats, and fluorescent bulbs (and ballasts); and automotive liquids such as anti-freeze and steering fluid.

The unused portions of these products that require disposal are known as “household hazardous waste” (HHW). They range from the more obvious products mentioned above to lesser-known ones like bleach, hair coloring products, floor wax, lighter fluid, and air fresheners.

Other HHW items are driveway sealer, fire extinguishers, muriatic (hydrochloric) acid, propane tanks (barbecue type), pool chemicals, chemistry sets, and car batteries.

Crowded Houses
Americans generate approximately 1.6 million tons of HHW per year. An average home can accumulate as much as 100 pounds of HHW in the basement or garage and in storage closets!

But according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the N.J. Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), disposal of these materials in a landfill - or, in Montclair’s case, at an incinerator - poses a serious hazard to human health as well as to the environment. Therefore, all N.J. residents are prohibited by law from disposing of HHW as garbage.

However, many people don’t understand that the products they’ve used are very hazardous, or, they don’t know how to dispose of them. Homeowners need to learn how to safely dispose of the residue from their home projects and hobbies. How the do-it-yourselfers take responsibility for the leftovers of their handiwork is as important a decision as color, fabric, and material choices.

Individual homeowners may think that their leftover project debris, motor oil, paints, and yard chemicals are an insignificant amount. But when multiplied by thousands of homes in a town like Montclair, and millions of homes across the state and around the country, the combined HHW poses a significant human health and environmental risk.

Household hazardous wastes are sometimes disposed of improperly by people pouring the stuff down a drain, onto the ground, into storm sewers and into septic systems. This improper disposal, like putting HHW out with the regular trash, also poses a substantial risk to people and the environment.

Certain types of HHW present hazards to children and pets when accumulated in our homes. They also have the potential to cause physical injury to our refuse workers during collection, could react with other waste in the refuse collection vehicles causing fire, could emit dangerous fumes from chemical reactions at the waste handling facility, and can contaminate septic systems or wastewater treatment systems.

Examples

• Our pure groundwater bears the brunt of wanton disposal of fluids. Gas, motor oil, paints, and liquid yard chemicals ultimately drain or seep into our local streams, such as Toney’s Brook, Nishuane Brook, Yantecaw Brook or Pearl Brook. These local waterways become either the Second River or the Third River, which are both tributaries of the Passaic River, which flows into Newark Bay and onward to the Atlantic Ocean.

• The same goes for yard chemicals. A frequent tendency by many unknowledgeable homeowners is to apply more fertilizer, herbicide, or insecticide than a manufacturer recommends. What the turf can't absorb will soon be carried away by rainwater or snowmelt, only to end up untreated in our regional watershed.

• Discover the many benefits of using organic fertilizers and non-toxic alternatives to pesticides. Whatever you use, apply them properly and remember that many yard chemicals are viable for years so they should be used carefully until the contents are gone. The empty containers are not recyclable, so dispose of them as refuse.

• Disposal of paints can be tricky. Empty paint cans may be disposed of as refuse. Homeowners should learn the difference between latex and oil-based paints. Oil-based paint may be labeled "alkyd", "contains solvents", "clean up with mineral spirits", "combustible", or "enamel." Latex paints aren't hazardous like oil-based paints, but disposal should still be handled carefully. For further instructions on disposal of paint, go to the Environmental Affairs page’s link to “How to Properly Dispose of Paint Cans”.

• Other harmful liquids demand safe disposal. If you've installed a new thermostat to conserve energy, don't automatically toss your old thermostat in the trash. Mercury is commonly used in the switch mechanism. Mercury is a serious neurotoxin and therefore a very harmful substance, especially for pregnant women, fetuses, and infants.

• The same goes for fluorescent lamps. These are definitely preferable to use compared to standard incandescent bulbs for conserving energy and saving money, but they also contain mercury, so when they are spent they must be held for a HHW collection.

Waste Prevention
Plan to avoid overages of hazardous materials with careful project planning.

• When using fertilizers or any other lawn and garden amendments, homeowners should pace off their yards to calculate square footage. This allows you to accurately measure the correct amounts of fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides you really need.

• The same goes for painting projects. Measure your surface footage. Paint manufacturers list the square footage coverage for each can of paint.

The Collection
To discourage residents from disposing of HHW in the garbage or other improper disposal, all NJ counties have set up HHW collection programs. The collected HHW is characterized by county personnel and shipped to an appropriate facility for recycling or disposal.

The HHW collection programs have become very popular with the general public and an enormous amount of hazardous waste has been removed from the environment, from the municipal solid waste stream and from people's homes.

The Essex County Utilities Authority oversees the Household Hazardous Waste Collection days for all towns in this county, including Montclair. Historically, their HHW collections are held twice each year, in spring and fall; often the spring event is hosted on the first Saturday in May in nearby Cedar Grove. This is a convenient location for Montclair residents.

The drive-in and drop-off collection takes place from 9:00 A.M. until 3:00 P.M. sharp, in the Essex County Fleet Maintenance Yard at 99 West Bradford Avenue (the continuation of Bradford Avenue), one block past Pompton Avenue. It is free for Essex County residents only (proof of residency required). No early arrivals are accepted, and it is a Rain-or-Shine event.

Latex paint, asbestos, regulated medical waste or infectious waste, commercial waste, empty containers, unlabeled or unidentified materials, explosives, munitions, ordnance, or reactive materials are not accepted.

For further information about the Household Hazardous Waste Collection, call the Essex County Utilities Authority at (973) 857-2350.

For further information, questions, or comments about waste prevention, reuse, recycling, or composting in Montclair, call the Office of Environmental Affairs at (973) 509-5721 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it