What is Household Hazardous Waste?

Hazardous waste is unused or leftover portions of products containing toxic chemicals used around the home. Products labeled Caution, Warning, Danger, Poison, Toxic, Flammable, or Corrosive are considered hazardous.

Household Hazardous Waste Includes Leftover:

Residents can properly dispose of household toxic items at no cost at the Environmental Collection Center located at EDCO Recycling & Transfer in Signal Hill.

Open the 2nd and 4th Saturday of each month from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. (closed on January 23, 2021, February 13, 2021, April 10, 2021, September 11, 2021, November 27, 2021, and December 25, 2021).

2755 California Avenue
Signal Hill, CA 90755

COVID-19 Drop-off Requirements:

Household Hazardous and Electronic Waste (HHW/E-Waste) collection events will resume as scheduled with new COVID-19 safety precautions. We ask that all attendees wear a face covering and remain in their vehicles with windows closed, if possible. Please stay home if you are experiencing any COVID-19 symptoms, have been asked to quarantine, or have recently traveled internationally.

Event staff will only remove household hazardous and electronic waste from your trunk/pick-up bed. To dispose of sharps, you will be required to exit your vehicle and dispose of them in the designated area.

Convenient Collection of:

• Household Hazardous Waste
• E-Waste
• Universal Waste
• Sharps & Medicine
• Pesticides & Fertilizers
• …and more

The facility will NOT accept business waste, tires, explosives, radioactive material, or medical waste!

When preparing to transport your HHW items, please remember:

• Do not transport more than the legal limit of 15 gallons or 125 pounds of HHW
• All container labels must be legible (no worn-off labels)
• All containers must be sealed and not leaking
• Do not mix different products into one container
• HHW must be transported in the trunk of the car or in another area away from passengers and pets

For information about how to properly dispose of household hazardous materials call the County Household Hazardous Waste Hotline at 888-253-2652, or 1-800-238-0172.

Or utilize the Earth 911 recycling hotline to locate drop-off programs for hazardous and non-hazardous materials: 1-800-CLEANUP (800-253-2687) or www.earth911.org

Recycle your Household Batteries

Did you know that Americans purchase nearly 3 billion dry-cell batteries every year to power radios, toys, cellular phones, watches, laptop computers, and portable power tools? Dry-cell batteries include alkaline and carbon zinc (9-volt, D, C, AA, AAA), Rechargeable Batteries (used in cell phones and power tools), and Button Cell Batteries (used in watches, cameras, and hearing aids). On average, each person in the United States discards eight dry-cell batteries per year.

Batteries contain heavy metals such as mercury, lead, cadmium, and nickel, which can contaminate the environment when batteries are improperly disposed of. When incinerated, certain metals might be released into the air or can concentrate in the ash produced by the combustion process. Recycling batteries keep heavy metals out of landfills and the air. Recycling also saves resources because recovered plastic and metals can be used to make new batteries.

One way to reduce the number of batteries in the waste stream is to purchase rechargeable batteries. Nearly one in five dry-cell batteries purchased in the United States are rechargeable. Over its useful life, each rechargeable battery may substitute for hundreds of single-use batteries.

To encourage Signal Hill residents to dispose of their household batteries properly, Public Works has provided three locations for the proper collection of household batteries. This program offers battery collection containers at:

• City Hall (lower level entry), 2175 Cherry Avenue
• City Library, 1770 E. Hill Street
• City Corporation Yard, 2175 E. 28th Street

Watch a Short Animated Video on Battery Safety from the Avoid the Spark Campaign

Paint

Paint may not be placed out for curbside collection or disposed of in a bin/container meant for solid waste. FREE paint recycling is available at drop-off sites throughout California. Most of these sites are at paint retailers (paint, hardware, and home improvement stores) that have volunteered to take back paint, and they are available to any resident and business in California. These stores accept paint whenever they are open for business. Below is a link where you can find a drop-off site near you and view hours and restrictions.

Find a PaintCare drop-off location