Niagara County celebrates Earth Day by announcing expanded household hazardous waste program

In honor of the worldwide celebration of Earth Day on April 22, Niagara County announced it is expanding its household hazardous waste (HHW) program for the coming year, hosting four recycling events in addition to offering a self-haul voucher program.

“We all know the three Rs of waste management, which are to reduce, reuse and recycle; and when it comes to household hazardous waste, that means recycle responsibly,” said Legislator Will Collins, chairman of both the county’s Public Works Committee and Refuse Disposal District. “That’s why we are excited to expand our HHW program for 2022, to make it easier for people to do the right thing.” 

Collins said the county is hosting four collection events this year, all on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon: 

√ June 18: Lewiston Highway Department 

√ Sept. 17: Newfane Highway Department 

√ Oct. 8: Town of Lockport Highway Department 

√ Nov. 5: North Tonawanda Department of Public Works 

Collins said online preregistration is required for all events and can be made at www.rethinkyourwaste.com/events. Registration opens a month before each event. 

In addition, the county is also sponsoring a yearlong voucher program that allows county residents to dispose of 50 pounds of household hazardous waste, at no charge, by self-hauling the materials to a facility in Tonawanda. To apply for your voucher, visit www.hazmanusa.com/calendar and choose Niagara County from the drop-down box. Those vouchers are available now through Dec. 31. 

Niagara County Environmental Coordinator Dawn Timm said, in the 10 years the HHW program has been operating, more than 900,000 pounds of harmful products have been removed from Niagara County homes.

She noted latex paint will now be accepted at all recycling events and through the voucher program.

“After hearing from residents on the desire to make it easier to recycle latex paint, we were part of a coalition that advocated for the NY Paint Stewardship Law to make that a reality,” Timm said. “The steps we take to encourage the recycling of paint and other HHW in a responsible manner ensures these materials do not end up in our soil or in our water, protecting our local environment. And that’s what Earth Day is all about.”