What is Household Hazardous Waste & how should you get rid of it?

Household Hazardous Waste, or HHW, is any unusable or unwanted product found in your home, garage, shed or barn that can be hazardous to plants, animals, humans or the environment if it is not disposed of correctly. 

Virtually all households have hazardous substances. Every year injuries, death, and environmental damages occur that could have been prevented by properly storing and disposing of household products.

Almost all products that are considered HHW will carry signal words on their labels to alert consumers to potential hazards. The signal word used indicates the level of toxicity of the product.

Poison - contents are highly toxic and potentially deadly at low doses.

Danger - corrosive contents can cause irreversible eye damage or severe skin injury.

Warning - contents are moderately toxic or can cause moderate eye or skin irritation.

Caution - contents are slightly toxic or may cause slight eye or skin irritation.

Hazardous household products should never go in your regular trash, down the drain, on the ground, or in a burn barrel. Follow these procedures to properly handle hazardous household products:

1. Use up what you have and make sure you only buy what you need. In the future, you might consider safer alternatives.

2. If you can't use the product, check with friends, neighbors, and community groups to see if they can use it. If you give a product to someone else, make sure it is in its original, labeled container.

3. Bring HHW to the Recycling Center during Drive-Thru hours (Monday - Friday 9am-4pm, Wednesday 9am-6pm). Please be sure they are not leaking and are in labeled containers (when possible).

Do not leave nuisance wastes on-site after posted hours. 

Placing the recyclables and/or other solid waste on the ground is considered illegal dumping, which is a violation of Indiana Code 35-45-3 and Dearborn County Ordinance 10-1991. Our grounds are monitored and violators will be prosecuted.

For the safety of staff and residents, the District reserves the right to reject certain highly-dangerous materials. If you believe you have such an item, please call ahead for disposal instructions. 812-926-9963