Household Hazardous Waste
How to Dispose of Household Hazardous Waste in York County
What Is Household Hazardous Waste?
Household hazardous waste (HHW) includes common products used in homes that are hazardous in nature but not regulated as hazardous waste under federal and state laws. These products can catch fire, react, or explode under certain circumstances, and/or can be corrosive or toxic. Examples include oil-based paints, bleach, and weed killers.
If you must use hazardous household products, choose wisely. Select the least toxic item to do the job, and buy only the necessary amount. When possible, use alternatives to common household hazardous products.
How to Dispose of Household Hazardous Waste in York County
- Donation–See if you can donate unused products to local community groups (as long as the items are still usable and not expired or damaged).
- YCSWA’s Website Search Tool–To find out how to dispose of the particular household hazardous waste material you are trying to dispose of, use YCSWA’s website search tool. The YCSWA search tool will provide specific disposal instructions for the hazardous material you want to get rid of. Click here to access YCSWA’s website homepage and the search button.
- Drop off at Our Annual HHW Collection Event–The first Saturday in May, YCSWA conducts a FREE Hazardous Household Waste Collection Event. There is no fee for York County residents, but REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED. Businesses and government entities are not eligible to participate. Look for additional information on this page and on YCSWA social media pages closer to the time of the event. Click here for a list of items that are accepted and not accepted during the event.
- The 2024 Household Hazardous Waste Disposal Event will be held on Saturday, May 4th from 9 am to 1 pm at the paved lot behind our Recycling Drop-Off Center located on Blackthorne Court. Click here to register. If you are unable to register online, please call 717-845-1066 to register.
- Drop Off at York County Resource Recovery Center (YCRRC)–With the exception of mercury containing devices, pressurized gas tanks, rechargeable batteries, pool chemicals, flares, weapons, ammunition and radioactive materials which are not accepted at the YCRRC, you may bring HHW to the YCRRC for disposal along with other household waste (click here for YCRRC tipping fee information). The YCRRC has a liquids hopper for safer management of HHW liquids. Please note there is a one gallon limit per visit for fuel (gasoline, diesel, kerosene) disposal and a 5 bulb/tube limit per visit for fluorescent bulbs/tubes.
- Pickup by Your Waste Hauler–Contact your garbage hauler to find out which materials they accept.
- The PA Department of Environmental Protection offers this advice when disposing of liquid HHW in the trash: Absorb them using material such as cat litter, sawdust, or vermiculite, and securely package the contents to prevent leakage. Dispose of the material in small quantities over several trash collection periods.