Finding Solutions — Spring 2012 (PDF) - David Suzuki Foundation

eal life
Each Canadian province has a HHW collection program to
help you dispose of these chemicals with minimal environmental
impact. Search your city website for drop-off depots and collection
dates.
Before heading to the depot
• Keep materials in their original containers or ensure that
containers are well-labelled
How to dispose of household
hazardous waste
Household hazardous waste (HHW) can cause illness or death to
people, plants, and animals. It can contaminate our bodies, homes,
and the environment.
HHW includes hair colouring, car wax, nail polish remover,
rechargeable batteries, and shoe polish. Most household cleaners
are also HHW, including abrasive and all-purpose cleaners,
aerosol air fresheners, bleach, disinfectants, drain cleaners, fabric
softeners, and glass and toilet cleaners.
If you have these chemicals in your home, you’ll want to dispose
of them correctly. This will ensure waste workers are not at risk of
inhaling toxic substances and reduce the chance of fires or explosions.
Never pour or flush HHW down the drain. Not only will this
contaminate our waterways and oceans, it can corrode plumbing
and cause septic system failure.
• Do not mix different products together
• Tightly cap all containers
You can identify HHW by these hazard symbols
Toxic: can cause illness
Corrosive: can eat through materials or living tissue
Flammable: can catch fire or burn easily
Reactive/explosive: can cause rapid heating
or explosions
Lindsay Coulter
David Suzuki’s Queen of Green
funding solutions
Turn e-waste into donation dollars
Clean out your desk drawers and closets! Keep old, obsolete,
or unwanted electronics out of landfills and fundraise for the
Foundation by sending them to Think Recycle.
It’s easy. Collect at least 10 acceptable electronics (e.g., cellphones,
print cartridges, digital cameras, laptops, and iPods). Then register
at www.thinkrecycle.com (say you’re raising funds for the David
Suzuki Foundation) and follow their directions for getting your
discards to their plant.
Reusable electronics will be refurbished. Those that can’t be
brought back to life will be carefully dismantled and separated,
and metals, glass, and plastic turned into raw materials for future
production of new goods.
Organize an e-waste drive at your office or school. Think Recycle
even plants a tree for every 24 qualifying products donated!
Gail Mainster
Kimberly Hoover of Think Recycle with David Suzuki
Secondary School students Jasmine Kaur, Zoya Chahal,
Mannal Maqbol, Nikki Sandhu, and Nikeshia Hamilton.
6