Why Is Proper Hazardous Waste Disposal Important?

As you’ve probably gathered from a few of our past blogs, not all waste can be disposed of in the same way. Some items and materials require a more specialized process. Let’s run through the main reasons behind this so that you can get a clearer understanding of why it’s important.

What is Hazardous Waste?
You might think of hazardous waste as things that can cause superficial injuries, like broken glass or sharp pieces of scrap metal. While these do carry their own procedures in terms of safe loading into a disposal bin, they’re not examples of the “hazardous waste” which requires entirely different disposal processes altogether. Hazardous waste is typically toxic or environmentally harmful, such as batteries, pesticides, paints, paint thinner, and other items that contain volatile chemicals. They cannot be sent to a landfill and must be dealt with in more specific ways.

Why Not Just Toss It?
Let’s say you find an old car battery in the garage or a few nearly-empty bottles of pesticide. It can’t do much harm to throw it in a standard receptacle or bin, right? Wrong. For starters, there are regulations that have been designed to discourage this kind of thing, because if everyone did it, the hazards it could pose to the environment are pretty considerable. Secondly, it poses a hazard to waste workers, and they don’t deserve that! One item may not seem like a big deal on its own, but it’s everyone’s responsibility to make sure all waste is dealt with in the right way.

Erring on the Side of Caution
The first thing to always bear in mind when it comes to hazardous waste disposal is that when you’re in doubt, you can always ask a waste management professional for personalized advice on the given items you’re disposing of. It’s simply not worth risking improper disposal. Most waste disposal teams won’t be able to dispose of these items themselves, as they will probably be working only with landfill-bound items, but they can direct you to the proper methods. This kind of expertise is exactly what you should look for in a waste disposal specialist!

Smart waste management means not only disposing of hazardous materials in the right way, but also choosing the right waste disposal team to deal with your standard refuse. Economy Waste offers an unparalleled experience, so call us at (403) 888-5483 to see what we can do for you!