Waste not, want not, Wastemobile wants your hazardous waste

Wastemobile visits Maple Valley, August 12-14

Are you a fan of drive thru coffee shops and curbside pick ups? Then the King County Wastemobile may be your next favorite service. The Wastemobile is coming out to Maple Valley to pick up discarded household hazardous waste.

Maple Valley residents can bring their household wastes to a three-day Wastemobile event on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, August 12-14, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Wastemobile will be located at Shadow Lake Elementary School, 22620 Sweeney Road SE.

"The intent of the program is to ensure safe, proper disposal of hazardous products people have in their homes, "said Jeff Gaisford, Recycling and Environmental Services Manager for King County's Solid Waste Division. "The easier we can make disposal of these hazardous materials the less likely it ends up in normal household trash. Our experience indicates that people use mobile collection services. It's clearly working by the numbers of residents that come out to these events.”

The first program of its kind in the nation, the Wastemobile has been providing household hazardous waste collection services for residents throughout King County for almost 20 years and over 16,000 residents have taken advantage of the service.

King County's Hazardous Wastemobile accepts pesticides, chlorine bleach, paint products, automotive products (oil, antifreeze, auto batteries, etc.) and other household hazardous items free of charge. By properly disposing of these materials and keeping them out of drains and garbage, you are helping safeguard your family's health and the environment.

For more information, including acceptable materials and quantity limits, call the King County Household Hazards Line at (206) 296-4692, Monday through Friday between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., except holidays. Recorded information is available after hours. You can also learn more by visiting the Wastemobile Web site at www.govlink.org/hazwaste/house/disposal/wastemobile.