Hazardous waste is any toxic chemical product you use in your kitchen, car, bathroom, garage or yard. The average home uses 40 pounds of chemicals each year and stores more than 60 hazardous products!*

*Source: RecycleWorks

We encourage you to consider non-toxic alternatives for some of the products you use, but for the rest, we ask that you dispose of them properly. For safety reasons, none of these items can be flushed down the toilet, poured into gutters or drains or thrown into the trash; in fact it's illegal to do so. They can pollute our water, endanger wildlife and pose a threat to human health.

To learn how to legally, safely and properly dispose of these items, visit the San Mateo County Health Department or call (650) 363-4718.

Aerosol cans (can be recycled if empty) Antifreeze Cleaning products and solvents Drain openers Fertilizers Fire extinguishers Fluorescent light bulbs and tubes Furniture and metal polishes Kitchen and bathroom cleaning products Latex and oil based paint and paint thinners

Lighter fluid Mercury thermometers Motor oil and used filters Old medications Pesticides, herbicides and bug sprays Photographic chemicals Sharps Varnishes and stains Water treatment (pool) chemicals

Electronic waste, also known as E-Waste, is one of the fastest growing segments of our nation's waste stream. In fact, it accounts for 70 percent of the overall toxic waste that is currently found in landfills.*

*Source: Clean Air Council

It is illegal to put Electronic waste, also known as E-Waste, in the garbage. E-Waste contains a variety of toxic components like lead, cadmium and mercury, arsenic and flame retardants, and when dumped in a landfill, these materials can potentially contaminate the soil and ground water, thus impacting surrounding areas. Electronics are made from valuable resources such as precious metals, copper, and engineered plastics, all of which require substantial amounts of energy to process and manufacture. Recycling electronics helps recover valuable materials and as a result, reduces greenhouse gas emissions and pollution, saves energy and resources by removing fewer raw materials from the planet.

To find a location nearest you to donate or recycle these items, please click here or call (888) 442-2666. You can also donate these items to several non-profit and local organizations; see below for several options.

Examples of E-Waste:

Calculators CD and MP3 players Cell Phones Computers and monitors Copy machines Fax and answering machines Microwaves

Radios Stereo equipment Tape players and recorders Telephones Televisions VCRs, DVD players and DVRs

We strongly support recycling and reuse of items and encourage the community to take advantage of donation opportunities offered by local organizations. Please visit any one of the sites below for more information.

• California Materials Exchange: www.CalRecycle.ca.gov
• Community Wish List: www.CommunityWishList.org
• FreeCycle: www.FreeCycle.org
• Goodwill: www.Goodwill.org
• GreenCitizen: www.GreenCitizen.com
• Pick of the Litter (benefiting Peninsula Humane Society): www.PeninsulaHumaneSociety.org
• RAFT (Resource Area for Teaching): www.RAFT.net
• Recycle for Breast Cancer: www.RecycleforBreastCancer.org
  Help protect the environment and support a worthy cause. Provides prepaid shipping labels, envelopes or collection materials based on the condition, quantity and weight of the items you have. Office is located in San Ramon, CA.
• Salvation Army: www.SalvationArmyUSA.org
• Samaritan House: www.SamaritanHouse.com A nonprofit agency serving low income families and individuals in San Mateo County.
• St. Vincent de Paul www.SVDP.org
• RecycleWorks Reuse Guide: www.RecycleWorks.org
  A listing of local social service organizations that accept household items for donation.

A new Door to Door curbside pick up program is available in some communities to Single Family Residents. Visit RethinkWaste for more information.

You can also visit RecycleWorks or the San Mateo County Health Department or call (650) 363-4718.

All batteries are considered Universal Waste once discarded. They contain heavy metals such as mercury, lead, cadmium and nickel, which can contaminate the environment when batteries are improperly disposed of. This includes all sizes: AAA, AA, C, D, button cell, 9 Volt, and all others, both rechargeable and single use.

To learn how to properly dispose of batteries so they can be recycled, please click here.

You've probably heard about CFLs, or compact fluorescent lights, the energy-efficient compact fluorescent lamps that consumers have been encouraged to use instead of typical incandescent lights. In fact, many of you have them in your home or business. They use much less electricity; three quarters less in fact.

The Environmental Protection Agency encourages the use of CFLs to save energy and prevent greenhouse gas emissions that lead to global climate change. However, because of the mercury CFLs contain, they must be disposed of carefully. Manufacturers of fluorescent lighting products are working to reduce the amount of mercury content in CFLs, and no mercury is released when the bulbs are intact or in use, but CFLs release a mercury vapor when broken.

With about 400 million CFLs being sold every year in the United States, it's more important than ever that you don't put them in the garbage or Recycle carts. However, there are other options.

We encourage you to take them back to any of the locations noted below so they can be safely and properly disposed of. You can also look into RethinkWaste's Door to Door Program.

If a fluorescent bulb breaks in your house, the Environmental Protection Agency advises consumers to open a window, have all people and pets leave the room, (making sure no one walks through the breakage area on their way out), and stay out of the area for at least 15 minutes.

For more information and to download a two page document of recommended steps, click here.

To download a handy chart to help identify the various types of lighting, click here.

You can call San Mateo County's Household Hazardous Waste Program for recycling options at (650) 372-6200. You can also find more information about discarding and disposing of other household hazardous waste at www.SMHealth.org/hhw.

CFL Drop-Off Locations
Belmont Ace Hardware 1029 Alameda De Las Pulgas	Brisbane Ace Hardware 1 Vistacion Ave. Brisbane City Hall 50 Park Place	Burlingame Ace Hardware 235 Park Road Lumiere 1405 Broadway	Colma Home Depot 2 Colma Blvd. and 91 Colma Blvd.
Daly City Service Lighting 2975 Junipero Serra Home Depot 303 E Lake Merced Blvd.	East Palo Alto IKEA 1700 East Bayshore Rd. Home Depot 1781 E Bayshore Rd.	Half Moon Bay Half Moon Bay Electric 429 Main St. Ocean Shore Hardware 111 Main St.	Menlo Park Reclaim: Healthy Green Home 855 Santa Cruz Ave.
Millbrae Millbrae Ace Lumber Company 200 El Camino Real Halogens 216 Broadway	Pacifica Recology of the Coast (Pacifica residents only) 1046 Palmetto Ave Linda Mar Ace Hardware 560 San Pedro Ave.	Portola Valley Portola Valley Hardware 112 Portola Rd.	San Bruno Eichen's Lighting 580 El Camino Real Recology San Bruno 101 Tanforan Ave.
San Carlos Niko Lighting 1148 San Carlos Ave. Allied Waste 333 Shoreway Rd. Home Depot 1125 Old County Rd.	San Mateo Wisnom's Hardware 545 First Ave. Home Depot 2001 Chess Dr.

California law prohibits the disposal of "sharps waste" in trash or recycling containers. All sharps waste must be transported to a collection center in an approved sharps container.
Sharps waste poses a threat to anyone it comes into contact with when disposed of improperly.

Home generated sharps waste includes:
Hypodermic needles, pen needles, syringes, lancets, and other devices that are used to penetrate the skin for medical purposes.

• Keep hazardous products on high shelves or in locked cabinets out of reach from children and pets at all times.
• Never store hazardous products in food containers.
• Keep hazardous products in separate containers - never combine them to save space.
• NEVER mix chemicals. Mixing even small amounts of chemicals can have dangerous results.
• Do not refill empty containers unless the label states it is acceptable to do so.
• Never remove product labels and always leave products in their original containers.
• Avoid storing hazardous products near sources of heat or flames
• Purchase only what you will need and share extras with a friend of neighbor.
• Make sure containers are clearly labeled, undamaged and sealed tightly.
• Be aware of leaky containers, poor ventilation and the smell of fumes or chemicals.
• Know where flammable materials are in your home and know how to extinguish them.

Place home-generated sharps waste in biohazard containers. Biohazard containers are available for purchase at local pharmacies and some office supply stores. Contact your health care provider, local pharmacies, hospitals or clinics to ask if they offer a collection program.

Mail-Back Service:
Visit the California Integrated Waste Board for more information on sharps waste mail-back services in California.

• CA Integrated Waste Management Board Information Line
  (800) 553-2962
• Department of Toxic Substances Control (to report hazardous waste violations only)
  (800) 698-6942