Pasadena Hosts Free Drive-Thru Hazardous Waste Collection Saturday at Brookside Park

Residents looking to clear out old paint cans, dead batteries, broken electronics or other toxic household items can do so for free Saturday at a drive-thru collection event at Brookside Park.

The City of Pasadena Department of Public Works is hosting the Household Hazardous and Electronic Waste Collection Event in partnership with the Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts and Los Angeles County Public Works, according to the city’s weekly newsletter published February 11. The event runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Parking Lot I, 360 N. Arroyo Blvd., south of the Rose Bowl Stadium. No appointment is needed, and the event will proceed rain or shine.

The collection is open to all Los Angeles County residents, including those in Pasadena and Altadena. The program gives residents a legal and cost-free method of disposing of household chemicals and electronic waste that cannot go in regular trash, according to the city newsletter.

Accepted items include motor oil, antifreeze, paint, paint thinner, turpentine, cleaners containing acids or lye, pesticides, herbicides, household and car batteries, old computers and television sets, used needles and sharps, expired pharmaceuticals, mercury thermometers, and fluorescent light bulbs, according to the city’s Department of Public Works.

The event will not accept explosives, ammunition, radioactive materials, business-generated waste, regular trash, old tires, or large appliances such as washers, stoves, refrigerators or air conditioners, according to the department. Document shredding will not be offered at this event, the city noted.

There is a limit of 15 gallons or 125 pounds of hazardous waste per vehicle — a threshold that also represents the legal maximum for transporting hazardous materials in a personal vehicle, according to the Sanitation Districts. Residents should bring items in a sturdy box, preferably in original labeled containers, and should not mix products together. Containers will not be returned.

The event is organized under the countywide Household Hazardous Waste and Electronic Waste Collection Program, which the county and the Sanitation Districts have operated since 1988, according to LA County data. The Sanitation Districts, a public agency comprising 24 independent special districts, serve approximately 5.5 million people across Los Angeles County, according to the agency.

For more information, residents can contact the LA County Sanitation Districts at (800) 238-0173 or info@lacsd.org. Additional details are available at the LA County Sanitation Districts website at lacsd.org.

The next countywide HHW collection event after Saturday’s Pasadena collection is scheduled for February 21 in Lake Los Angeles, according to the Sanitation Districts’ event calendar.