Do you have a stack of old paint buckets taking up too much space in the garage? Maybe you need to get rid of that cleaning product you used to clean the house 10 years ago? Well, we have the perfect event for you.
Hamilton City Council is teaming up with Waikato Regional Council and ChemWaste to bring you Hamilton’s first Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event on Saturday, 22 May.
The event provides a free and environmentally-friendly opportunity for people who live in Hamilton to get rid of paint, solvents, batteries, oils, chemicals, florescent lights and other hazardous materials taking up space at home.
Resource Recovery Advisor Kirsty Quickfall said spaces will fill up fast, so Hamiltonians should get in quick and sign up today to get rid of hazardous materials safely and free of charge.
“Although the event is free, we only have enough resources to get rid of household quantities, we won’t be able to take trailer loads or large quantities from businesses. If it can fit in your boot, bring it along,” said Quickfall.
Hamilton residents can sign up to the event for free through the event portal, select the items that you’d like to dispose of, and we’ll provide you with a time-slot on the day.
Waikato Regional Council Waste Prevention Advisor Valerie Bianchi encourages Hamiltonians to do the right thing and dispose of hazardous materials the right way.
“This event will not only save space in your garage and in your wallet, but it’ll also help stop toxic chemicals from going down drains and minimise leachate generated from landfill that pollutes our waterways and endangers native fish and other animals that live in our rivers and streams,” said Bianchi.
Protecting the environment is not the only benefit the event will have on our city.
Quickfall is clear that some of these materials, like fluorescent lights, can also be very dangerous for our frontline workers when collecting and sorting Hamilton’s rubbish and recycling.
“If these materials can be safely disposed of in a controlled environment, we can reduce the amount of workplace incidents caused by dangerous materials. Ultimately, it comes down to keeping our people safe and our waterways clean”.