The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) mobile household hazardous waste collection service will be held in Rutherford and Washington counties this Saturday, April 2nd, according to the department.
During the day, all Tennesseans, no matter their zip code, are encouraged to bring household hazardous waste – including cleaning fluids, pesticides, batteries and more – to a designated drop-off location, according to a press release by TDEC.
The drop-off locations for the service this Saturday are:
- Rutherford County – Murfreesboro Solid Waste Department, 4765 Florence Rd., Murfreesboro, 8 a.m.-noon. The contact is Bishop Wagener at (615) 898-7948.
- Washington County – Daniel Boone High School, 1440 Suncrest Dr., Gray, 9 a.m.- 1 p.m. The contact is Lewis Haynie at (423) 753-1652.
Household hazardous waste materials are considered flammable, toxic, reactive and/or corrosive and should not be placed with regular garbage, according to TDEC. Typical items to dispose of include cleaning fluids, pesticides, mercury thermometers and thermostats, fluorescent lamps, lithium and button batteries, aerosols, adhesives, medications, brake fluid, swimming pool chemicals, paint thinner and used needles in sturdy containers. Items not accepted include ammunition, explosives, alkaline batteries, paint, electronics, and any empty containers that should be disposed of in normal trash.
“We are pleased to provide this opportunity to dispose of household hazardous waste properly,” Commissioner David Salyers of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation said in a statement. “We want to make it as convenient as possible for Tennesseans to demonstrate their commitment to protecting the environment.”
When transporting materials to the site, TDEC advises those to “place containers in sturdy boxes lined with newspaper or plastic to prevent spills and cross-contamination in the trunk of a car or back of a truck,” and “be sure to keep materials away from children and pets.”
Since the program’s inception in 1993, more than 360,000 Tennessee households have properly disposed of more than 23 million pounds of material according to TDEC. There have been over 1,400 one-day collection events. Last weekend, as reported by The Tennessee Star, TDEC hosted a similar mobile household hazardous waste collection service in Fayette, Hamblen, and Roane counties and plans to hold another in Dyer County on April 30th.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network.
Lol. One day. One day for a handful of hours. This is a joke, right? And the counties and State wonder why people drop this stuff off on some back road (like a road by me 🤬). One day for a handful of hours.