Athens Now Archives

Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event on April 10!

By: Leigh Patterson

Mark your calendar! Keep Athens-Limestone Beautiful is pleased to announce that we will be hosting another Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Collection Event in 2021. If you missed our last event, now is your chance! Springtime is a great time to clean out and gather up all of your household cleaners, household chemicals, old paint, lawn and garden chemicals, or other items that you may have been storing for years. Our collection offers you an opportunity to rid your home of potentially dangerous items and to properly dispose of them once and for all!

KALB would like to cordially invite all Limestone County residents to our 2021 Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event. This event will be held on Saturday, April 10 from 8:00 a.m. to noon in the Athens Middle School north parking lot (between the school and the football stadium), located at 100 US Hwy 31 in Athens. The gates will close at noon sharp, so be sure to arrive in plenty of time. Volunteers will be on site to provide traffic direction in the parking lot and to help unload vehicles. This event will be a drive-through, drop-off event, and residents are encouraged to stay inside their vehicle to allow the volunteers to unload their HHW items. Please note, this event is for LIMESTONE COUNTY RESIDENTS ONLY.

Examples of (including but not limited to) acceptable household hazardous waste items:

  • Paint (spray paint, liquid paint) and paint-related products such as mineral spirits, turpentine, furniture strippers, paint removers, stains
  • Automotive products such as transmission and brake fluid, anti-freeze, gasoline
  • Lawn and garden poisons such as weed killers, fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, rodent poisons, roach and flea powder
  • Household cleaners and chemicals such as oven and toilet cleaners, disinfectants, drain cleaners, rug shampoo, polishes, ammonia, bleach-based products, pool chemicals
  • Fluorescent bulbs (contact KALB to specify type)

Items Not Accepted: We cannot accept explosives, medical waste, biological waste, or radioactive materials.

If you have an item that you are unsure about, please contact us and we will get an answer for you.

For Your Safety: Please do not load your HHW items into an enclosed vehicle the night before the collection event. These chemicals may release toxic or harmful fumes into your vehicle when left for an extended period of time. Also, do not allow these items to get wet before the event. Some chemicals are water reactive and may cause injury or harm. Do not mix unknown items together as this may cause a dangerous chemical reaction. Please try to bring these items in their original containers. However, if these containers are damaged, please put them in a box that has been lined with two garbage bags or in a container with a lid. If your household wastes are leaking, put the box or container in cat litter, sawdust, or other similar absorbent materials.

Why This Event Is Important: Household hazardous waste items, when burned or poured down the sink or storm drains, are very harmful to our environment. When these items are placed inside household garbage, they pose a safety risk to sanitation workers, including fires and damage to sanitation trucks. Collectively they pollute our ground water, our soil, and our air. Many people have admitted to disposing of these items improperly because there has been no proper way offered to them for disposal. This collection offers everyone in Limestone County a proper way to dispose of these items.

We, at KALB, are excited and grateful to be able to provide this collection event to our city and county residents. Without the support of the organizations listed below, this collection would not take place. We would like to thank the following for their partnership and support in making this much-needed event happen:

  • Solid Waste Authority of Limestone County
  • Limestone County Commission and Commission Chairman Collin Daly
  • Athens City Council and Mayor Ronnie Marks
  • Solid Waste Disposal Authority of the City of Huntsville
  • Mayor’s Youth Commission

Please feel free to contact KALB with any questions you may have. If we don’t have the answer, we can find one for you!

For information on our upcoming Trash Attack event on March 6, please visit the Keep Athens-Limestone Beautiful Facebook page, email us, or give us a call.
By: Leigh Patterson
Executive Coordinator – Keep Athens-Limestone Beautiful