Recycling And Disposal Of Pesticides And Weed Killer
Pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides, all end in the suffix cide, which in Latin means killer. Fungicides and herbicides are simply forms of pesticide. The pesticide term is often commonly refereed to as bug killer. These substances eliminate things like ants and grubs. Fungicides and herbicides are often called weed killer. They kill plant pests like fungi, weeds, and non native or invasive plants. Each of these are potentially dangerous to humans, animals, and to the environment. Even products that are low in toxicity, natural, or organic can be harmful if someone comes in contact with large quantities of the substance.
To tell the level of toxicity in the pest control, look on the label. It will either say CAUTION, WARNING, or DANGER. Caution means it has the lowest toxicity, WARNING is medium, and DANGER is the most toxic and requires the most care.
What Is Yard Waste
Before we divulge into how to get rid of backyard waste, lets first define what it is. Yard waste is any organic material that comes from your yard from large trees, shrubs, and bushes. They include:
- Leaves and twigs
- And other yard waste
Basically, anything that grows in your yard can be considered yard waste. And while some of it, like leaves and twigs, can be composted, other items, like grass clippings, should be disposed of properly.
Household Hazardous Waste Drop
Did you know there are household hazardous waste drop-off locations where you can dispose of chemicals, paint or other dangerous products?
Before you drop off items, make sure they are stored, labelled, and sealed properly.
These household hazardous waste materials can pose a danger to our workers, your family, your pets, your neighbourhood and the environment.
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How To Get Rid Of Yard Waste
There are several methods to dispose yard waste. One way is to compost it. Besides composting, yard waste can also be burnt. Typically, home renters and homeowners have bins for organic waste recycling. Municipal waste management companies also provide such bins. Alternatively, you can dispose yard waste by burning it or using cardboard as a container. However, before dumping your yard waste, consider whether it is legal.
How To Dispose Of Weed Killers
Pesticides are formulated to be poisonous to the pests they are intended to control. When applied correctly, pesticides will help protect your plants and a house. However, if label directions are not followed precisely, plant injury may happen, pests may remain uncontrollable, human health may be compromised, and pesticides may lead to soil, air, or water contamination. Herbicide chemicals can often have a harmful effect on the ecosystem once they reach rivers.
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Manage Yard Waste On Your Property
Leave grass clippings on the lawn. They act like natural fertilizer adding nutrients to the soil as they decompose.
Mulched leaves make great fertilizer too. Instead of raking and bagging leaves each fall, mow over them and leave them on the lawn.
Organics Recycling And Composting
Organics refers to both yard trimmings and food scraps. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation places a high priority on managing these materials through reduction, reuse, and recycling, including composting.
Ever wondered how Monroe County makes compost and where you can get some, any time of the year? Watch this video to find out!
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How To Safely Dispose Of Chemical Waste
Chemical waste is likely not something you think about often, but you can probably find it all over your house. Its in your cleaning supplies, your cosmetics, your medications and your lawn care supplies. When these items need to be disposed of, it would be environmentally hazardous to just put them out with your garbage or pour them down your drain. Take these steps to safely and legally dispose of chemicals in your household.
Step 1 Identify Local Agencies and Companies
The Federal Resource Conservation Recovery Act contains the regulations currently governing waste disposal. The Environmental Protection Agency enforces these regulations. Chemicals are classified based on their composition and level of hazard, and each classification has specific rules as to how to dispose of those chemicals.
The EPA has listings of these harmful chemicals on its Web site, epa.gov, that you can use to identify your chemical and learn of any rules regarding its disposal. Alternatively, you may call an EPA office in your state.
Step 2 Contain and Label Your Chemical
Step 3 Transport Your Chemical Waste to an Approved Location
How To Get Rid Of Dirt
Breaking ground on a big project? Dirt needs to be cleared as part of many jobs, whether youâre digging a basement for new construction or designing a multi-level landscape. You might be able to reuse soil on your property if youâre simply removing planter boxes or flower beds, but large amounts may require a different disposal method. Here are your dirt removal options.
How to Dispose of Dirt
Curbside Collection
Most regular collection services donât consider materials like dirt and rock as yard waste. These items will need to be separate from other green materials to be accepted.
Compost
You can add dry soil to the top of your compost pile to create layers with other materials. Keep in mind that wet soil can make your pile slimy and create pest problems.
Dumpster Rental
Renting a dumpster is the most effective option for medium to large amounts of dirt. We offer dirt dumpsters designed to handle the weight, and we haul it to the appropriate recycling or sorting facility.
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The Legality Of Dumping Yard Waste
In Minnesota, it is illegal to dump yard waste in a landfill and it can result in a fine of up to $1100. Yard waste should be taken to a licensed yard waste compost facility where it is converted into organic matter that improves soil nutrients. If youre unsure how to properly dispose of yard waste, contact a professional junk removal service. The junk removal service will then take your yard waste to a licensed yard waste compost facility, where it will be turned into organic compost.
While the fines for illegal dumping can vary depending on the type of offense and the amount of waste disposed of, the fines will be at least $500 if the offender did not have a permit. For a felony, the fine could be as much as $25,000 and two years in prison. Biomedical waste, hazardous materials, and commercial waste are also considered illegal dumping and are subject to higher fines and jail time.
Turn Yard Waste Into Mulch
Use a wood chipper or hire a tree removal service to chip your yard waste into mulch. We tried borrowing a wood chipper from a neighbor, but we had far too much material to chip on our own after five years of neglect. Had we been more diligent about mulching regularly, Im certain we could have tackled this project ourselves.
If you want to try creating your own mulch but dont own a wood chipper, borrow one from a neighbor if you can. Ask to borrow one through a local Buy Nothing group if you dont know someone who can lend their wood chipper to you. Many people also use Buy Nothing groups to swap services or skills, so you could request someone provide a gift of their time to help you accomplish the task.
With respect to soil health, mulch not only helps garden beds look nice, but it also covers bare soil. Bare soil has much less life and biodiversity in it and is more prone to erosion than covered soil. Repurpose fallen branches and brush as mulch for your garden beds and other open spaces. Mulch can also be expensive, especially when you incur delivery fees, so using yard waste to create mulch can be a more affordable landscaping option too.
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Do Not Burn Leaves Or Any Yard Waste
Burning yard waste is not a safe disposal method. It pollutes the air and can even cause uncontrolled fires.
Backyard burning releases many substances that are harmful to your health, according to the EPA, like carbon monoxide, dioxins, nitrogen oxide, and particulate matter. The smoke makes air unsafe to breathe and can also affect soil and water quality because rainfall redistributes smoke particulates.
These are all made even worse by the risk of wildfires, which devastate natural areas and are very difficult to control and extinguish.
Yard Waste Is Seasonal
The City of St. Louis operates a weekly collection service for yard waste during the Spring, Summer and Fall months. Yard Waste Collection is discontinued for both roll-carts and alley yard waste dumpsters.
Residents may also bundle limbs in six foot lengths and place them out for the monthly bulk pick up. The Refuse Division will accept one pick-up truck load of yard waste each month from residents at either the north or south transfer station.
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How To Dispose Of Old Garden Chemicals
Old, expired, or withdrawn garden chemicals should be dropped off at the local household hazardous waste collection center. Heres is how to go about it:
Step 1: Call the local waste management or environmental agency to find out where and when you can drop off pest and weed control chemicals.
Step 2: Read and follow the disposal instructions on the label.
Step 3: Ensure the containers are sealed properly and have their labels intact. Do not mix different chemicals.
Step 4: Place the containers on a liner and take precautions to ensure they wont shift or spill during transportation. Alternatively, you can arrange the chemicals in a plastic bin.
Step 5: Take care not to place the chemicals in a passenger compartment or near foodstuff.
Step 6: Drive straight to the collection facility and hand over the chemicals.
Lawn Care Leave Grass Clippings On The Lawn
If you have a lawn, one of the best ways to get rid of grass clippings is to leave them on the property. Grass clippings add nutrients that your lawn needs, making excellent fertilizer.
Plus, theyre free! So why not put them to good use? Just be sure to cut grass regularly and evenly. This will prevent the clippings from smothering your lawn and causing problems.
On the other hand, if the green waste makes a large clump, use your mower to chop them up. This allows you to spread the clippings evenly over your lawn.
An often overlooked benefit of not throwing away grass clippings is that it reduces transportation-related emissions.
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Avoid Using Pesticide Products
While it may be tempting to use pesticides to get rid of pesky bugs, you risk killing off beneficial insects or hurting other wildlife in the process. Pesticides affect not only the target pests, but also other insects in the ecosystem, including earthworms, ants and beetles, that help make soil healthy. Whats more, its more difficult to compost or reuse yard waste that has been treated with pesticides.
Instead of using harsh chemicals that can harm plants and poison water and air when used excessively, incorporate plants into your yard and landscape that attract beneficial insects. They will naturally prey on bugs that damage your plants. You can also use eco-friendly pest control methods that make your yard safe for your children and pets. If you do decide to use pesticides, be sure only to do so with the guidance of a trained pro.
Being proactive about managing yard waste not only reduces the amount of organic waste sent to our landfills and recycling facilities but it may also improve the air quality of the environment and keep your lawn healthier overall. By keeping yard waste out of the trash, you can help return the nutrients back into the soil in an eco-friendly way.
What Inspectors Look For
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Mystery drums. All drums must be labeled and have a birth date on them .
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Drums that are left open. Evaporation of wastes can create a hazard. If you are not in the process of adding wastes to a drum, keep it closed.
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Old drums left outside. If they get stormwater inside them, you will be responsible for sampling the stormwater to determine whether the water is hazardous. Ensure that the person who sold you the drum and its contents will take the drum back when you are done with it .
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Dumpsters. Inspectors will look into them.
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Spills. These should be cleaned up immediately after they occur.
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The inspector will walk the entire property and propertys perimeter looking for orphan drums and signs of distressed/dead vegetation.
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The most common violation is the non-determination of whether something is a waste.
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Leave Grass Clippings On The Lawn
Save time and energy by leaving grass clippings on your lawn after mowing. Grass clippings protect the soil and decompose to return valuable nutrients to the soil. If the grass clippings are especially large or clumping, mow over them a second time to break them down and spread them more evenly .
Grass clippings help keep the grass healthier. Not tossing them in the trash also eliminates any emissions related to transportation that may be required to haul them away.
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Drop Off Yard Waste At A Collection Site
If a community garden or neighbor arent options, you can also recycle your yard waste at your local county yard waste collection site or composting facility. Contact your local collection site for their specific guidelines on whether they have a collection day or you need to drop it off, as well as how much and what kinds of yard waste they accept.
Many facilities also repurpose green waste into mulch or compost, which you can pick up. Local composting facilities make a great option for eco-friendly waste management if you want the benefits of compost without having to maintain your own compost pile at home.
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City Of Portland Single Sort Recycling
DO NOT PLACE A CITY TRASH BAG IN THE BLUE RECYCLE CART. LOOSE RECYCLING ONLY IN THE BLUE CART.
Please visit the Trash and Recycling Collection Web App to find the what day of the week your trash and recycling is collected. For first time here? Check out the Trash and Recycling Collection App User Guide, how to document.
For additional question regarding trash and recycling collection day, please contact Department of Public Works at 207-756-8011.
All Weekly Trash and Recycling Pickup is subject to change due to City Holidays, Construction, Special Events, Inclement Weather, and Natural Disasters. Please refer to the City of Portlands Website for future updates.
Tips To Reduce Household Hazardous Waste
Use a non-hazardous alternative:
- Environmentally friendly and safer alternatives are available for household cleaning, home improvement and garden care
Be a wise consumer:
- If you must purchase a hazardous product, buy only the amount you can use up. Avoid larger quantity, bulk purchases if you dont need a lot.
Read labels:
- Ensure that the product you purchase does what you want it to do before you purchase it. Once purchased, follow the instructions on the label for safe use, ventilation and storage.
Give leftover hazardous products to someone who can use them:
- Relatives, friends, neighbours, community groups and charitable organizations may be able to use some of what you no longer need.
Avoid aerosols whenever possible:
- Much of the aerosol product ends up in the air. Purchase safer alternatives.
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Yardwork Accumulates Piles Of Grass Leaves And Twigs Get Rid Of Them For A Clutter
A day of cutting grass, pruning shrubs and pulling weeds can leave you with quite the pile of sticks and leaves. But how do you dispose of yard waste? Rather than dumping it in your regular trash bin, which may be unlawful depending on your location, try these six disposal methods for the scraps from your backyard.
On This Page
Requirements Of Yard Waste Recycling
First its worth noting that every county is different. Some wont take leaves or grass clippings in plastic bags while others will. Its also important to know that yard waste recycling does not include large materials from tree removal, lot clearing, or home renovation projects. Many counties use independent hauling companies for curbside pickup of yard waste and they may have their own set of rules as well.
In the video below you can see how a local yard waste pickup operates. Notice how many people have reusable containers. That is a best practice for curbside pick up.
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What Are Some Examples Of Yard Waste
Finding out whether your garbage is yard waste or if your normal trash provider can remove it, is one of the most crucial things to accomplish.
Yard waste is made up of dead plants and animals from things like cutting down trees, chopping wood, or even mowing the grass. Yard trash includes bags of grass clippings, leaves, dead trees and bushes, sticks, and big branches.
Heavy things like rock chips or bricks cant be thrown away with yard waste and must be moved with great care. Most boulders and bricks are too heavy to be allowed in standard facilities, so they are usually only allowed elsewhere. You might have to pay a fee if you throw away heavy items with yard waste.
