Burlington sees spike in unsafe disposal of household hazardous waste

Published May 9, 2023 at 6:03 pm

Too many people in Burlington are improperly dumping household hazardous waste and other liquids and materials.

The Burlington Fire Department issued a statement late today (May 9) that there has been a recent spike in investigation calls especially due to unsafe disposal of gas and household fluids.

While the fire department could not be reached for clarification, this usually means people have been dumping the fluid into sewers or down the drains in their own homes.

A waste management expert contacted by inhalton.com said people can get sloppy or lazy when disposing of unsafe waste, but in many instances, they just don’t realize they are doing anything wrong.

The source said aside from just flushing fluids down drains or sewers people also dump into rivers and streams as well as throwing it in with the regular trash.

“The repercussions can be quite dangerous and can contaminate water systems, damage the environment and kills animals,” he said.

Some items that regularly don’t receive proper disposal include any automotive fluid, household cleaners, lawn and garden chemicals, paints and solvents, propane tanks, medication and syringes.

The Burlington Fire Department says to dispose of these items properly they should be brought to the Household Hazardous Waste Depot located at the Halton Waste Management Site located at 5400 Regional Road 25 in Milton. Hours are Monday to Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Also, open every Sunday in May and June from 8 a.m. to noon.

You can find out specific disposal methods of waste by following this link.

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