Household hazardous waste

Leon was helping his dad repaint the garage door. Now they are done, but there is some paint left. What should they do with it? Many man-made objects and chemicals become waste when we no longer need them. Sometimes waste contains substances that can be very dangerous to people, plants, and animals.

This type of waste is called hazardous waste. It is often a result of producing something else - a byproduct of industrial or agricultural processes. But a lot of hazardous waste comes from our households too! Left-over paint is one example of that. How can we know?

Look at the packaging, Leon. There is a symbol with an exclamation mark, and another one with a flame. The first one means that the substance inside is harmful. It can cause for example, skin or eye irritation, or allergic reactions. The flame means that the substance ignites and burns easily, so it can cause fires.

It is ignitable or flammable. Apart from paint, this symbol can often be found on petroleum products, solvents, and some types of glue. There are also other symbols that indicate hazardous chemicals in different products. A symbol of an exploding object is used to mark substances that can cause explosions, for example if they’re heated or compressed. We call these substances reactive.

An example of reactive products we might have at home are aerosols in cans, such as hair spray or cooking spray. A symbol of a liquid dripping from a tube and burning into a surface and a hand is used to mark strongly acidic or alkaline substances. These substances can damage objects they come in contact with, because of the chemical reactions that take place. We say they are corrosive. Examples of corrosive materials used in households include chemical drain cleaners, or battery fluids.

A skull with crossed bones symbolises substances that are poisonous - toxic. Toxic substances can cause very serious health problems if you eat them or breathe them in. Examples of toxic substances are pesticides and some cleaning fluids. In the past, many products found in households contained toxic heavy metals such as mercury, cadmium, or lead. Even though the use of these substances is much more regulated now, some products can still contain them, for example fluorescent lamps.

These are safe to use when they are intact, but might become dangerous if they break or are disposed of improperly. If hazardous waste ends up in the water, soil, or air, it can remain there for many years, endangering living organisms! How can we avoid that? We can try to reduce the amount of hazardous waste we produce. If possible, look for alternatives that do not contain dangerous chemicals, for example, cleaning products made of natural ingredients.

If you do need to buy something that contains dangerous substances, avoid buying more than you actually need. And if you have some left-over, you can give it to someone who will use it, instead of throwing it away. If you dispose of hazardous waste, make sure you do it in a responsible way. When mixed together with other rubbish, hazardous waste can pose a danger to those who handle it. If it ends up in the wrong place, like a landfill, it might contaminate the environment.

That’s why it needs to be separated, and disposed of at an appropriate facility. There, waste is sorted, and then destroyed or treated to be safer for the environment. Some of it can even be recycled! Find out what you can do with hazardous waste in the area where you live!