Houshold Hazardous Waste

Click on the links below to learn more about
Houshold Hazardous Waste

Seekonk Recycle Page

Categories of Houshold Hazardous Waste
What you can do about HHW

U.S. Enviromental Protection Agency

Household Hazardous Waste; what it is and how to reduce it
Suggested alternatives to common hazardous household items

Massachussetts Department of Environmental Protection

Answers to Commonly Asked Questions About Household Hazardous Waste











HHW Categories

Generally HHW materiels belong to one of the following
hazardous waste categories:

CORROSIVES
	Examples are drain cleaners, rust removers and oven cleaners. Corrosives have an extremely low or high pH and can burn skin and mucous membranes. Labels usually state, “CORROSIVE—AVOID CONTACT WITH SKIN OR EYES.”

FLAMMABLES
	Examples include gasoline, kerosene, fuel oil, butane, oil-based paints and paint thinners. Labels usually say, “EXTREMELY FLAMMABLE—KEEP AWAY FROM ANY SOURCE OF IGNITION” and “HIGHLY FLAMMABLE—KEEP AWAY FROM FLAMES.

TOXIC MATERIELS
	Examples are benzene, cyanide compounds (found in rat fumigants), thallium sulfate (ant traps) and carbon tetrachloride (old fire extinguishers). Materials may be carcinogenic. Labels often contain the skull and crossbones and usually state, “DANGER/POISON” or “WARNING— KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN.”

OXIDIZERS
	These chemicals react strongly with other compounds and may cause fires or explosions. Examples include chlorinated pool chemicals, sodium hypochiorite and various peroxides. Labels usually say, “WARNING—STRONG OXIDIZER.’

AIR QUALITY HAZARDS

Could cause excessive emissions or toxic ash problems at resource recovery facilities or incinerators. Examples include thermostats, paints that contain more than one percent by weight of heavy metals, products that contain significant amounts of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and batteries—nickel, cadmium, lithium and lead acid.

WILDLIFE HAZARDS

Examples include old chlorinated pesticides such as DDT, chlordane, dieldrin, heptachlor, etc. Labels usually indicate the material presents a hazard to fish or wildlife. The material may be immediately toxic or accumulate in various tissues of the fish or animals. Of particular concern are those materials that are slow to degrade and tend to bio-accumulate.

UNKNOWNS
	Unidentified materials—such as those that contain no label or ingredient information—should be treated as though they belong to one of the above categories until proven otherwise.

BACK

What can you do about HHW.

The best way to manage HHW in to avoid creating it. Select the least toxic product to do the job. Buy only as much as you need. Is the product still usable? Give it away. A friend, neighbor, or community group such as Little League or Habitat for Humanity may be able to use it. If the product isn’t usable, or you can’t give it away, take it to your community’s HHW collection program. Do you have used motor oil or used oil filters? Take them to a used oil collection site. BACK