The Ridge Meadows Recycling Society – for one day only – is holding a household, hazardous waste drop-off event.
Household hazardous waste includes any leftover household products that contain corrosive, toxic, flammable, or reactive compounds that municipal sewage systems and private septic systems do not filter or remove or can lead to groundwater contamination if buried.
The event is being hosted by the City of Maple Ridge working with both the recycling society and Terrapure, a Canadian waste management company that specializes in environmentally sound and efficient waste disposal solutions.
“Many residents have half-full bottles of old, outdated, or unmarked liquids, cleaners, or chemicals they may have inherited from former tenants or relatives. Some of these may have been hiding in the back of a cupboard or garage for 20 or 40 years,” said City of Maple Ridge Mayor Michael Morden.
“This event is a rare opportunity for Maple Ridge residents to bring in those ‘mystery’ jars and dispose of them safely,” he added.
Items accepted for drop-off at the event include oven and toilet cleaners, bleach, brake fluid, concentrated acids, herbicides, liquid car wax, lye, swimming pool chemicals, mothballs, rust removers, wood preservatives, nail polish remover, furniture polish, darkroom chemicals, rubber or plastic cement, roofing tar, charcoal briquettes, perm and hair dye solutions, adhesives, resins, caulking, and more. All materials should be in a leak-proof container or bag – ideally with a clear, readable identifying label – but materials will be accepted without one.
READ MORE: Ridge Meadows Recycling Society celebrating three years of Repair Cafés
Materials that won’t be accepted at the event include explosives – ammunition, fireworks, road and marine flares – radioactive, bio-hazardous materials, and sharps or needles.
Sandy Sigmund, president of Ridge Meadows Recycling Society, is expecting the household hazardous waste event to be very busy and is asking residents to plan ahead and drop off all other recyclables at the depot on another day.
Maple Ridge Household Hazardous Waste Drop-off Day takes place Saturday, Sept. 19, and is available to Maple Ridge residents only.
The event will be held in Ridge Meadows Recycling’s front lot at the corner of River Road and 236 Street at 10092 – 236 St..
If it gets busy, traffic controllers will direct residents who have registered to drop off their household hazardous waste to wait in a line-up next door in the Kanaka Creek Pole Company parking.
READ MORE: Ridge Meadows Recycling Society marks 40 years
Upon arrival, residents must go through a COVID-19 screening, show their confirmation email – either printed or on a mobile device – and prove they are a Maple Ridge resident by showing their B.C. driver’s licence or ID card.
All occupants of each vehicle should be wearing masks or face coverings and stay in the vehicle with the windows rolled up.
Items to be dropped off will need to be placed in the rear trunk area only – not in the back seat or front seat.
Drop-off materials will be removed from the vehicle by staff and containers or boxes holding items will not be returned to residents.
Any resident – showing signs of fever, coughing, difficulty breathing, or pneumonia; who has travelled to a country outside of Canada, been on a cruise ship, or visited a health care facility or any location where there has been positive cases of COVID-19; or who has been in contact with a person who recently travelled outside of Canada, has been in contact with a person who has been diagnosed with COVID-19, or has been in contact with a person who has an undiagnosed respiratory illness or is being tested for COVID-19 in the 14 days leading up to the event – will not be permitted to attend the event.
Residents must pre-register online for the one-time, free drop-off event to bring in household quantities of hazardous waste.
Time slots available are from 8 a.m. to noon or noon to 4 p.m. and registration spots will be limited.
Terrapure will be on site to sort, test, and safely dispose of any materials that residents bring in.
Online forms are now available at Ridge Meadows Recycling Society’s website, www.rmrecycling.org.
newsroom@mapleridgenews.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter