1. We survey the cars as they arrive
2. Our hazardous waste vendor unloads your car
3. You’re on your way

Delaware County sponsors four (4) Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Collection Events each year. Each year, the number of participants and the weights, particularly computers, TVs and e-waste increases. In 2013, we will continue to offer computer and portable TV recycling as well as small electronics (excluding items that contain Freon) at three of our four events. If you’ve ever participated in an event, you leave with a good feeling knowing you’ve disposed of your hazardous items in a responsible fashion

To back up a bit… Delaware County has been hosting HHW Events since the early 1990’s. By 1998, Delaware County joined forces with the City of Philadelphia, Bucks, Chester and Montgomery Counties in an effort to remove HHW from the environment, collectively and more efficiently. The advantage for Delaware County residents is that if our scheduled events are not convenient, you may take your HHW to any one of the above counties’ events. Consequently, in 2013, there will be more than twenty opportunities for you to properly dispose of your Household Hazardous Waste. A list of dates and locations for the entire region should be available by mid-February.

As a result of this cooperative program and in recognition of our efforts to remove hazardous materials from our environment, Delaware County and the Southeast Region were recipients of the 1999 and 2008 Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence. Additionally, this Program earned a 2007 PA Waste Watcher Award for Outstanding Achievement in Special Collections and Outstanding Achievement in Reuse for our commitment to recycling, waste reduction and reuse in the state of Pennsylvania. Our Program was awarded the 2011 North American Hazardous Materials Management Association Award for Longstanding Program Excellence for our program. This five-county program has collectively removed more than 3 million pounds of hazardous waste from the environment, last year alone.

Our choice of a hazardous waste vendor insures that as much of the waste that can be recycled, is. Examples include: motor oil is sent to a company that removes the dirt, the oil is then reused; propane tanks are drained, reusing the remaining propane; tanks are examined and those that can be reused are sent to a propane company in order to be refilled; those that cannot are sent to a scrap metal recycler.

Our locations in Sharon Hill, Media and Upper Chichester allow us to collect E-Waste along with Household Hazardous Waste. Unfortunately, our Marple Transfer Station site has a limited staging area which prevents us from accepting computers, TVs and small electronics. Listed below you will find the event dates and locations as well as the items that will be accepted. Additionally, cell phones will also be accepted at ALL our collection events.

HOW TO IDENTIFY HHW:

Typically, item labels that contain the words: HAZARDOUS – DANGER – WARNING – POISONOUS and TOXIC, indicate items that contain hazardous material.

TYPICAL HHW INCLUDE:
Oil-based Paint Paint Thinner Varnish Kerosene Gasoline Motor Oil Antifreeze Weed Killers	Fungicides Pesticides Items containing Mercury Propane Tanks weighing less than 20 lbs. Ni-Cad, Lithium, Rechargeable & Lead Acid Batteries Rechargeable & Lead Acid Batteries Cell Phones

Latex Paint is not hazardous and is not accepted at these one day hazardous waste events.

Simply open the lid and let Latex Paint air dry. Leave the lids off when placing out with your regular trash. In the event that you have too much paint and it will not harden using this method:

1) Take two cardboard boxes

2) Line one with an outside trash bag

3) Place kitty litter in the trash bag

4) Dump all your Latex Paint into the bag containing the kitty litter

5) Stir. If it still seems to ‘runny’ either add more kitty litter or shredded newspaper to the mix. (You want it to solidify.)

6) In the second box place the empty cans of paints putting the pints in the quarts and the quarts in the gallons. All lids MUST REMAIN OFF THE CANS.

7) Place both boxes out with your regular trash.

DISPOSE OF HHW PROPERLY

Improperly disposed HHW can pollute the groundwater, surface water, and the air we breathe. It can harm children, pets, and sanitation workers. Listed below are ways you can dispose of HHW in a responsible manner.

SMALL ELECTRONICS COLLECTED ALONG WITH COMPUTERS AND TV’S

ACCEPTED APPLIANCES
TVs Computer Systems Stereos CD & DVD Systems Microwaves Toasters Coffee Makers Blenders Mixers Can Openers	Power Tools Irons Hair Dryers Curling Irons Vacuums Copiers Electric Typewriters Dictaphones Adding Machines, etc.

***PLEASE DO NOT BRING ANY LARGE APPLIANCES AND/OR ITEMS CONTAINING FREON THEY WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED ****

Always looking to improve and expand on what we can recycle, we will again this year accept cell phones at all our HHW Collection Events for recycling. Cell phones may also be dropped off at the Solid Waste Authority’s office at the Hunt Club in Rose Tree Park, 1521 N. Providence Road, Media, PA 19063, Monday through Friday between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. To make it easier still, most libraries have a blue drop off box. Please recycle your cell phone books and boxes with your curbside recycling. Please no cords. Only the cell phone itself should be recycled at the locations noted above.

2013 HHW Informational Flyer in PDF

DISPOSE OF HHW PROPERLY

SMALL ELECTRONICS COLLECTED ALONG WITH COMPUTERS AND TV’S