The Regional District Central Okanagan (RDCO) is urging residents to safely dispose of and recycle hazardous household waste to avoid danger for staff and infrastructure.
Hazardous waste cannot is not allowed in curbside bins. It must be put in waste containers at construction sites, taken to the Glenmore Landfill or dropped off at other transfer stations and collection depots. This helps reduce the chance of fires and explosions and protects staff and the environment, and RDCO media release states.
鈥淩esidents can do their part to help keep our workers safe by disposing of their waste properly,鈥� said Scott Hoekstra, landfill operations manager at the City of 琉璃神社. 鈥淥ften times there are lithium-ion batteries hidden in a load or item being disposed of, which are a common cause of fires at the landfill.鈥�
The most recent fire at the landfill was Aug. 10, although the cause is not known. On July 23, a recycling truck caught fire in the 300 block of Ziprick Road. It鈥檚 believed a metal fuel filter, incorrectly placed in a household recycling cart, may have caused the blaze. No one was injured.
Electronics, batteries and other hazardous wastes can catch fire or explode during landfilling and recycling processes.
鈥淗azardous materials that are placed in recycling carts are extremely dangerous, not only for collection staff, but also for vehicles and sorting equipment,鈥� said Cynthia Coates, supervisor solid waste at the RDCO.
Hazardous waste is anything that is corrosive, flammable or poisonous. This includes e-cigarette batteries, small power tools, smoke alarms and even children鈥檚 toys with batteries left inside. Any items that are marked with a 鈥渄o not dispose鈥� note or logo should never be combined with your landfill load or disposed of in curbside-collection bins, the RDCO says.
