18 Tons Of Hazardous Waste Collected From Smithtown Homes

Kings Park NY

05 October, 2021

12:13 PM

Description

KINGS PARK, NY — More than 18 tons of hazardous waste were collected from Town of Smithtown households at the Hazardous Household Waste event held Saturday, according to the town. Smithtown households — 446 of them — disposed of 36,220 pounds of toxic items, which are not allowed to go out in regular curbside waste pickups. "The sheer weight in toxic products collected over the weekend corroborates just how important protecting the environment is to our residents," Supervisor Ed Wehrheim stated. "As a community we've become more proactive, removing old and harmful products from the home and checking labels at the store. I'd like to commend our team of Environmental experts, Municipal Services Facility employees, the Department of Environment and Waterways and Public Safety for conducting what was by far the most seamless event hosted for the Smithtown community." The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation is expected to reimburse the Town of Smithtown for half of the contractor expense for this event, according to the town. Smithtown Municipal Services Facility employees worked with the Department of Environment and Waterways Environmental Director David Barnes and Solid Waste Coordinator Mike Engelmann to safely secure more than 23 55-gallon drums, 18 1-cubic-yard boxes, one miscellaneous container for specialized hazardous waste and two full 30-cubic-yard roll-off containers loaded with paints and solvents. The exact weight of the items to be disposed of was 18.11 tons. Materials were collected and set to be disposed of by Radiac Research Corp. Residents who participated also got to collect free bags of mulch. Waste collected for disposal includes: oil-based paints, gasoline, paint thinners, waste gases, petroleum distillates, flammable solids, liquid and solid oxidizers, sodium/potassium nitrates, acids, corrosives, pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, toxic liquids and solids, lacquers, lithium batteries, battery acids and various other toxic compounds. The 2022 household hazardous waste events are being planned and will be announced in the 2022 Refuse & Recycling Calendar, the town said. The events are for Smithtown Township residents only.