Spring into Cleaning!

With spring in the air, many of you might be looking to dive into some cupboards, garages and spare rooms for some good old-fashioned spring cleaning! Spring cleaning is not just limited to indoors; maybe your car could use a good wash after a long, rainy winter or perhaps your yard needs freshening up. Whatever it is that needs to get done, we have some tips to help you do the dirty work in a stormwater-safe way!

Household hazardous waste:  Garages are often home to the old and forgotten chemicals, automotive fluids, paints and batteries that we don’t know what else to do with. Be sure to thoroughly check the labels of containers before you dispose of its contents. Anything labeled “danger,” “warning,” “toxic,” “caution,” “poison,” “flammable,” “corrosive,” or “reactive” is considered Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) and must be disposed of properly. To avoid injury and toxic pollution to our waterways, dispose of these materials at your local HHW collection center, which can be found at http://www.oclandfills.com/hazardous; in the future, opt for non-hazardous options wherever possible.

E-waste: The average American discards approximately 176 pounds of electronic waste per year^*! About 30% of these outdated, obsolete or broken electronics end up in a landfill, are exported for dumping or are otherwise discarded. These electronics not only contain hazardous materials that can leak into waterways, but they also have precious resources that can be used in the manufacturing of new electronics. Be sure to check with your city about e-waste collection days or drop off points to responsibly dispose of these items. Alternatively, Orange County residents can dispose of their Household Hazardous Waste items for FREE at any of the County’s four Household Hazardous Waste Collection Centers.

Car washing: The best option is to take your car to a car wash that recycles, treats, and reuses wash water without discharge to the sewer system. If you prefer to wash by hand, be sure to wash your car over a permeable surface, such as grass or gravel, so that wash water can filter through the soil. Runoff from car washing can contain many pollutants that are toxic to our local wildlife and waterways.  Also, make sure to use an automatic shut-off nozzle on your hose to prevent excessive water use and runoff.

Yard waste: Pruning, clearing out gutters, mowing lawns and landscaping all generate green waste. While this waste is natural, it can be detrimental to our waterways if it gets in our storm drains. Once in our waterways, yard waste removes oxygen while “super fertilizing” the water with nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus as it decays.  This can lead to waterbodies becoming unsightly, releasing a foul odor, and being subject to algal blooms and impacts to aquatic life.  To keep this from happening, check out where you can dispose of green waste here: http://www.ocagcomm.com/abatement/facilities.

We hope this helps make the dirty work of spring cleaning cleaner for our waterways as well, good luck!