Every day we come into contact with potentially hazardous substances, from paint to corrosive chemicals, batteries to glues. To ensure we stay safe, and we protect the environment, it’s imperative we sort and dispose of this kind of waste correctly. Here’s what you need to know about handling hazardous waste.

What is Hazardous Waste?

Any waste that contains components that are an immediate threat to human health or the environment is classified as hazardous, including corrosive, extremely flammable, reactive, or toxic compounds. Hazardous waste includes solids, liquids, and gases.

  • Solids include asbestos, batteries, and electrical devices.
  • Liquids could be oil or other chemical-based residues.
  • Gases include chlorine gas and sulfur dioxide.

Common household hazardous waste includes:

  • Solvent-based paints
  • Pesticides
  • Other garden chemicals
  • Phone batteries
  • Car batteries
  • Motor oils
  • Petrol and kerosene
  • Cleaning and polishing chemicals
  • Swimming pool chemicals
  • Pharmaceuticals
  • Obsolete computer equipment
  • Thermometers, barometers, thermostats
  • Fluorescent tubes and compact fluorescent globes
  • Gas cylinders

In the workplace, hazardous substances could include acid, caustic substances, disinfectants, glues, heavy metals such as mercury, lead, cadmium and aluminium, paint, pesticides, petroleum products and solvents.

What To Do With Hazardous Waste?

To avoid further contaminating the environment, hazardous waste must be handled with care and disposed of properly. You cannot dispose of hazardous materials through your regular rubbish pick-up service. Instead, many local councils have designated drop-off sites for residents to take their hazardous waste.

It is important to note that not all types of hazardous materials can be taken to council drop-off sites, and it is recommended that you check with your local council before doing so.

Resource recovery facilities are ideal for hazardous Sydney rubbish removal as they are set up specifically to sort and dispose of different kinds of waste using a range of technologies, including thermal, mechanical, and biological technologies. They include Alternative Waste Treatment, Garden Organics Processing, Thermal Waste Technologies, Material Recovery and Recycling facilities.

Waste transfer stations are another option for disposal, and these are prominent in regional and rural areas of NSW. They are essentially a staging point or drop-off location for rubbish before it is transported to a final disposal site. They’re essentially a link between solid waste collection programs, community recycling centres and waste disposal facilities.

In addition, there are various hazardous waste management programs operating throughout the state which provide services such as collection, storage and disposal of hazardous materials. These programs usually offer specific services such as medical waste and chemical waste disposal. They include:

  • Paintback takes your old paint and packaging and treats or recycles them so they don’t end up in a landfill.
  • MobileMuster will take any mobile phones, batteries, and accessories.
  • Fluorocycle is a safe place to drop off your old mercury-containing lamps so that they can be recycled and reused.
  • Techcollect is part of the National Television and Computer Recycling Scheme (NTCRS), and it helps you safely and responsibly recycle unwanted electronics.
  • DrumMuster is a national service that helps chemical users dispose of used chemical containers in a safe manner.

In addition to permanent drop-off sites at community recycling centres and select resource recovery facilities, some councils also offer free drop-off sessions throughout the year where people can drop their domestic hazardous trash. Check with your local council to see if there are any of these services near you.

You can also check through the EPA website – simply enter your address or postcode and search for Chemical CleanOut events, or Community Recycling Centres in your area.

What Happens If Hazardous Waste Isn’t Disposed of Properly?

When released into the environment, hazardous materials can contaminate soil, water, and air, causing long-term consequences on the environment, human health and wildlife. Hazardous waste chemicals have even been associated with a variety of chronic diseases in people, such as cancer and respiratory issues.

How Can Cheapest Load of Rubbish Help?

To guarantee our ecosystem remains healthy and secure for future generations, you need to dispose of hazardous trash properly. That’s where we come in. At Cheapest Load of Rubbish, we can dispose your hazardous materials (where possible) safely and efficiently through our rubbish removal in Sydney operations. We can come to residential and commercial premises to remove rubbish, as well as construction sites and industrial warehouses.

The team at Cheapest Load of Rubbish have the expertise and experience needed to handle certain hazardous materials safely and efficiently. We follow all local regulations, so you can rest assured that your hazardous waste will be handled ethically, and we guarantee we will dispose of your waste in a safe and responsible manner. 

While there are some items we can’t help with, there are many items we can dispose of – simply get in touch if you have any questions. The team at Cheapest Load of Rubbish rubbish removal in Sydney are ready, and we offer same day service when possible.