These solid or liquid materials and gas containers have outlived their usefulness and could harm people or the environment, without special handling and treatment in how they are discarded. They can be flammable, corrosive, explosive or toxic and because of these dangerous characteristics should not be sent to the landfill or emptied into sewer systems.

Household hazardous products in Canada display one or more of the following symbols:

• Flammable - burn easily (painting wastes, degreasers, and other solvents).
• Corrosive - eat away surfaces and skin (rust removers, alkaline cleaning fluids and old batteries).
• Reactive/Explosive - react violently when mixed with other chemicals, under pressure or heat (aerosols).
• Toxic/Poison - poison or cause damage to living organisms (materials containing heavy metals like mercury, lead or cadmium).

When a product displaying one or more of the warning symbols is discarded (after considering reuse possibilities), it should be disposed of properly.

Here are some of the items brought to household hazardous waste Round-Ups or other hazardous waste collection sites:

Disposal of household hazardous wastes

Household hazardous waste round-ups are organized by communities throughout Alberta. Items collected are sorted, packed and labeled by qualified personnel, then taken to Swan Hills Treatment Centre for safe treatment and disposal.

Precautions

Keep materials in their original containers: if cracked or broken, place the container in a leak-proof package and label it. Jars or cans of unidentified/unknown chemicals should be taken to a collection site and staff advised. Any container printed with product warning symbols or precautions about use of the product or instructions on disposal of the container should be included.

Options

There are recycling options for some hazardous wastes such as used oil, lead-acid batteries, ni-cad batteries and propane tanks. Check Yellow Pages under Recycling or or contact Alberta's Recycle Information Line at 1-800-463-6326.