Last Saturday 580 vehicles came to the parking lot at Apopka High School and dropped off hundreds of pounds of, for the most part, recyclable Household Hazardous Waste.
Chemicals, paint, batteries, light bulbs, electronics and used cooking oil were among the most popular items at the annual event hosted by the Orange County Solid Waste Division.
But what happens to all that stuff?
Nearly everything is recycled, according to Oscar Ramos, Environmental Coordinator for Orange County.
Examples:
Mercury is recovered from these florescent light bulbs.
Used cooking oil, aka grease, is blended with fuel for vehicles:
Lots of items are removed from electronics:
Of course, not everything is recyclable. Chemicals are transported to be incinerated after being weighed and properly labeled:
Surprisingly, alkaline batteries are not recyclable. But rechargeable batteries are.
When in doubt, save your batteries for this event next year. Let the professionals do the sorting!
So, what about all of those paint cans in the first photo?
"Flammable paint is bulked with other flammable solvents and disposed thru incineration and some goes for fuel blending," said Ramos. "Latex paint is not hazardous and since there is no cost-effective options to recycle, it can be landfilled."
