Are there some unacceptable methods of disposal for household hazardous waste?
Yes. Household hazardous wastes should never be poured down a drain. Municipal sewage treatment plants and residential septic system are not designed to adequately teat hazardous materials. Although the waste will be diluted, the chemical composition is usually not changed. These materials are sometimes called “pass through pollutants,” meaning that they can travel through your local wastewater treatment plant unchanged and end up in our river and oceans. Further, never pour anything down a curbside storm drain. Usually, these drains are not connected to the sewage collection system and often discharge directly to a river or the ocean. Likewise, household hazardous wastes should never be dumped on the ground. It takes a surprisingly small amount of material to contaminate large areas of soil or groundwater. Even though some municipalities allow it, never burn garbage or any hazardous materials in your backyard! Through this uncontrolled open burning, you could generate poisonous gases,
