Household chemicals mix dangerously in garbage
Linda Sappington
Mixing household substances such as fuel, bleach and other chemicals can be dangerous for residents, garbage collectors and emergency responders.
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POLSON — Two incidents in Missoula last week serve as reminders for Lake County residents to adhere to common sense and strict guidelines when discarding hazardous waste and household chemicals.
Someone walking through an alley noticed a residential garbage can was fuming and called 911. Emergency responders from fire, police and health departments were able to isolate the source — a mixture of acid and various automotive fluids. They secured the waste and transported it to safe storage where it could be disposed of properly. No one was injured.
But a day later, two trash collectors from Missoula’s Republic Services (Allied Waste) came in contract with gasses coming from a garbage pickup in the Rattlesnake. The workers had to be taken to St. Patrick Hospital, where they were treated and released.
The load was taken to the landfill where emergency responders determined the fumes resulted from ruptured household chemicals — including pesticides, fertilizers, bleach and fuel — that were mixed in the compactor/garbage truck.
Incidences like these pose a risk for residents, workers and emergency responders.
People often don’t realize the reactions that can occur when common household products are mixed, according to Travis Ross, Environmental Health Specialist with the Missoula City-County Health Department.
“Many people assume that just because a cleaning product or gardening chemical is relatively safe to use by itself, it is also safe to dispose of. This is simply not true,” he said.
This is even more important in Lake County, Max Bauer of Republic Services said, “because our guys don’t see (the trash).”
Lake County’s automated garbage trucks have a mechanical arm that picks up the bins and dumps the garbage right into the truck. The workers are in the cab, and can’t see what’s going in, Bauer said.
The solution? Don’t have leftovers to discard.
“We recommend you use up everything you have,” Mark Nelson of the Lake County Transfer Station said, “or find someone who can use it.”
Shortly after the transfer station opened just south of Polson, someone dumped bleach and chlorine tablets into a dumpster.
“Those two create chlorine gas. That will pretty much kill you,” Nelson said.
Missoula holds an annual event for accepting household chemicals; Lake County does not.
“But we will take a lot of stuff … just call first. I’ll take stuff all year long,” Nelson said, adding that a collection company comes in and packages all the “bad stuff” and hauls it away.
For questions regarding safe disposal of materials, call the Lake County Transfer Station, (406) 883-7323. The transfer station, located at 36117 Reservoir Road, also accepts most recyclables, with the exception of glass. For a complete listing of items the transfer station accepts: http://lakecountyrecycling.com/doc/RecycleFlyer.pdf
