Properly dispose of hazardous waste at King County’s Wastemobile

The Wastemobile travels to Federal Way, Sept. 28- 30

Residents of King County have the opportunity to dispose of their household hazardous waste by bringing it each day to the Wastemobile event in Federal Way on Sept. 28-30, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The Wastemobile will be in the parking lot of Sears, 1701 S. 320th St. The service is free of charge to King County residents.

King County's Hazardous Wastemobile accepts pesticides, chlorine bleach, paint products, automotive products (oil, antifreeze, auto batteries, etc.), fluorescent bulbs/ballasts and other household hazardous items free of charge.

By properly disposing of these materials and keeping them out of drains and garbage, residents are helping safeguard their family's health and the environment.

Created in 1989, the Wastemobile was the first program of its kind in the nation. In its first 17 years in operation, the program collected15, 771 tons of household hazardous waste from 343,060 customers. In its 26 collection events last year, the Wastemobile served more than 18,000 King County residents, collecting an average of 110 pounds of hazardous waste per customer, for a total of 1,000 tons.

"The intent of the program is to ensure safe, proper disposal of hazardous products people have in their homes," said Alexandra Thompson of King County's Solid Waste Division.

"Our goal is to make disposal of these hazardous materials easy so that they won't end up in the normal household trash," Thompson said. "The number of residents that come out to these events lets us know that we are providing an important and convenient service."

For more information, including acceptable materials and quantity limits, call the King County Household Hazards Line, 206-296-4692, Monday through Friday between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., except holidays. Recorded information is available after hours.

Information is also available on the Wastemobile Web site at www.govlink.org/hazwaste/house/disposal/wastemobile/index.html.