It's in LaPorte County, Indiana

 

Perhaps you've attended one of our Saturday HHW Mobile Collections and seen, first hand, all those guys and gals walking around in white Tyvek suits. They may look like creatures from another world, but they wear those protective suits to be sure our high safety standards are met and exceeded.

The HHW Program, under the 10 year leadership and direction of Tom Buford, our HHW Coordinator, has grown beyond our wildest dreams. Not only will Tom and his crew collect the ordinary household waste products which can be harmful to our environment, the program has added a SHARPS collection and an Expired Medication area.

Often there are long lines and folks get impatient because they have to wait. While this is understandable, this FREE program is a necessity to our community and well worth a bit of waiting time. To hurry through a collection could lead to mistakes, and Tom is ever mindful of how dangerous those mistakes could be to all concerned.

We have become one of the largest mercury collection sites (for homes) in the state, and we are proud of our statistics in this department. Mercury is dangerous; it's not something to be handled carelessly.

Tom Buford - Household Hazardous Waste Coordinator

Our SHARPS program provides a safe and convenient way to rid your home of insulin/injectables needles/syringes. In the past, these items ended up in the garbage where the possibility of an unsuspecting trash hauler or a child getting stuck could occur.

By bringing these dangerous items to our collection in a SEALED CONTAINER (such as a detergent bottle with a screw on lid NOT a milk jug), we will then give you another SHARPS container FREE.

We all remember the old days when we were told to flush outdated medications down the drain or toilet, right? Oh so wrong!! Some medications, especially in areas were there are wells and septic systems, can leach and pollute drinking water. Anyone with an allergy could become ill by ingesting water contaminated with medications meant to heal. Even in septic systems, antibiotics can kill the natural enzymes necessary to kill the very bacteria which breaks down waste.

Bring your old meds, in their bottles, to our collections. SHARPS and Meds are collected by someone trained to handle them; they are disposed of in a safe and environmentally friendly way.

HHW Collections are held once per month in LaPorte County, March through October, though the locations of the Mobile unit change for this event. Please remember, we DO NOT accept latex paint.

During 2005, we received about 48.63 tons of HHW, all of which was recycled or safely disposed. Watch a time lapse video of the collection process.

What is the Lake Michigan Districts Household Hazardous Waste Mobile Collection Program?

The LMDHHW program is a cooperative effort between the Lake, Porter, and LaPorte County Solid Waste Districts to collect household chemicals.

LMD operates a mobile collection unit which change location throughout the three county area.  These collection sites are held on Saturdays starting in the spring & running through fall. Check our calendar of special program events for exact dates.

In addition to the mobile unit, LMD runs a battery collection program, a Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generator (CESQG) program, and is part of IDEM's Mercury Awareness Program (MAP).  Call the Lake Michigan Districts to find out more on these other programs at:

1-800-946-4449 or 1-219-326-1425

Mobile Collection Program

What Can I Dispose Of?

• Aerosols
• Automotive Supplies
• Antifreeze
• Oils and other fluids
• Batteries
• Automotive
• Household
• Corrosives
• Expired Medications
• Mercury Containing Products
• Fluorescent Tubes
• Thermometers - silver bulbs
• Thermostats
• Other mercury containing items
• Outdated Medications
• Paint And Related Products
• Oil based paint - bring oil based paint to the mobile collections; remove lid from latex paint cans, allow to dry completely, and dispose of with your regular garbage.
• Thinners
• Solvents
• Pesticides
• Fungicides
• Herbicides
• Insecticides
• Other Poisons
• Waste Fuels
  • Diesel
  • Gasoline
  • Kerosene
  • Other Flammable Liquids 

• Ammunition & Explosives
  • Contact your local fire department for disposal
• Commercial Hazardous Waste
  • Contact Lake Michigan Districts at 1-219-326-1425 for more information on the CESQG program.
• Medical Waste
• Radio-active Materials

RECYCLE AND REUSE

Many people use needles and syringes as part of their medical Care at home. Proper disposal is an important safety issue not only for the user, but also for employees who work with the disposal of sharps.

The Solid Waste District of La Porte County has previously supplied containers for disposal of sharps, but these containers are a very costly part of the program. We are now RECYCLING plastic bottles (bleach, detergent, fabric softener, etc.) and recycling them into sharp containers. You may pick up a container at our office, and you may also pick up labels to put on your own recycled container.

Please use a plastic bottle that is leak proof, shatter proof and puncture proof, screw the lid on when full and take to our next Household Waste Collection for proper disposal. NEVER PUT SHARPS IN YOUR RECYCLE BIN.

More Resources:

View our photo album of the collection program

 

 

Aradise Productions, Michigan City, Indiana