RECYCLE - taking something old and turning it into something new!

• How do I dispose of...?
• What types of items may be placed into residential/commercial recycling containers?
• What types of materials are illegal to throw in the trash?
• Where can I dispose of “hazardous waste” and other materials?

How do I dispose of...?

Bottles & Cans	Bottles and cans can be recycled by: 1) Placing them in any brown residential cart. 2) Placing them in any white commercial bin. 3) Taking them behind Ralph's located at 31481 Santa Margarita Parkway.  The center is open Tuesday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and SAturday 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.  The center is closed on Sunday and Monday. 4) Visit www.bottlesandcans.com for more locations. Note: If you live in an apartment complex or a condominium complex with bin service, please contact your management company and/or your association's board of directors and let them know you are interested in recycling.
Paper	White paper, colored paper, newspaper, cardboard, phonebooks, etc. can be recycled by: 1) Placing them in any brown residential cart. 2) Placing them in any white commercial bin. 3) Visit www.earth911.org for more locations. Note: If you live in an apartment complex or a condominium complex with bin service, please contact your management company and/or your association's board of directors and let them know you are interested in recycling.
Batteries	Batteries are considered household hazardous waste and are prohibited by State law to be thrown away in the garbage. Batteries must be properly disposed. Please recycle your batteries at the following locations: 1) Drop off at one of Orange County Household Hazardous Waste Facilities which are open Tuesday through Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.  San Juan Capistrano 32250 La Pata Ave, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675 (located at the Prima Deshecha landfill)  Irvine 6411 Oak Canyon, Irvine, CA 92618 (located in front of the Irvine City Dog Park) 2) Drop off at City Hall:       Rancho Santa Margarita City Hall       22112 El Paseo, 949.635.1800 3) Residents may call Curbside, Inc. at 800.449.7587 to schedule a household pickup of batteries. Please call Curbside, Inc. for pricing and scheduling. 4) Visit www.earth911.org for more locations. Typical Types of Household Batteries that can be recycled Primary Cells (Nonrechargeable) Common Uses Alkaline Radios, appliances Carbon-zinc Flashlights, toys, etc. Lithium Cameras, calculators, watches, computers, etc. Mercury Hearing aids, pacemakers, cameras, calculators, watches, etc. Silver Hearing aids, watches, cameras, calculators Zinc Hearing aids, pagers Secondary Cells (Rechargeable) Common Uses Nickel-cadmium Cameras, rechargeable appliances such as portable power tools, etc. Small sealed lead-acid Camcorders, computers, portable radios and tape players, cellular phones, etc.
Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs) Fluorescent Tubes	Compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) and fluorescent tubes are considered household hazardous waste and are prohibited by State law to be thrown away in the garbage.  CFLs and fluorescent tubes must be properly disposed.  Please recycle your fluorescent lights at one of the following locations: 1) The following establishments collect used fluorescent tubes: Denault's True Value - 26006 Marguerite Parkway, Mission Viejo, CA, 949.582.8767 Denault's True Value - 27815 Santa Margarita Parkway, Mission Viejo, CA, 949.581.6100 2) Orange County Household Hazardous Waste Facilities are open Tuesday through Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. San Juan Capistrano - 32250 La Pata Ave, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675 (located at the Prima Deshecha landfill) Irvine - 6411 Oak Canyon, Irvine, CA 92618 (located in front of the Irvine City Dog Park) 3) Residents may call Curbside, Inc. at 800.449.7587 to schedule a household pickup of CFLs.  Please call Curbside, Inc. for pricing and scheduling. 4) Visit www.earth911.org for more locations.
Electronic Waste	Electronic waste (e-waste) includes televisions, computer monitors, computers, printers, VCRs, cell phones, telephones, radios, and microwave ovens.  E-waste is considered household hazardous waste and is prohibited by State law to be thrown away in the garbage.  E-waste must be properly disposed.  Please recycle your e-waste at one of the following locations: 1) Residents of the City can call CR&R at 877.728.0446 to arrange free pickup of e-waste. 2) Orange County Household Hazardous Waste Facilities are open Tuesday through Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. San Juan Capistrano - 32250 La Pata Ave, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675 (located at the Prima Deshecha landfill) Irvine - 6411 Oak Canyon, Irvine, CA 92618 (located in front of the Irvine City Dog Park) 3) Residents may call Curbside, Inc. at 800.449.7587 to schedule a household pickup of e-waste.  Please call Curbside, Inc. for pricing and scheduling. 4) Visit http://www.earth911.org/ for more locations.
Sharps	Sharps includes hypodermic needles, syringes, acupuncture needles, blades, etc.  Due to the serious health risks posed by sharps, it is considered household hazardous waste and is prohibited by State law to be thrown away in the garbage.  Sharps must be properly disposed.  Please recycle your sharps as follows: 1) Ask your local pharmacy if they have a collection program for sharps. 2) Most pharmacies carry a medical waste container for collection of sharps.  These containers typically have a box with prepaid postage for easy disposal.  If the pharmacy does not carry these at the store, you can typically order them off the pharmacy's website by searching for "Sharps Disposal". 3) Orange County Household Hazardous Waste Facilities will collect sharps.  HHW facilities are open Tuesday through Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. San Juan Capistrano - 32250 La Pata Ave, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675 (located at the Prima Deshecha landfill) Irvine - 6411 Oak Canyon, Irvine, CA 92618 (located in front of the Irvine City Dog Park) 4) Residents may call Curbside, Inc. at 800.449.7587 to schedule a household pickup of sharps.  Please call Curbside, Inc. for pricing and scheduling.
Pharmaceuticals	Pharmaceuticals includes prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications and veterinary medications.  It used to be common practice to flush medications down the toilet.  However, due to the serious health risks posed by pharmaceuticals, it is considered household hazardous waste and is prohibited by State law to be thrown away in the garbage.  Pharmaceuticals must be properly disposed.  Please recycle your pharmaceuticals as follows: 1) Ask your local pharmacy if they have a collection program for pharmaceuticals. 2) Ask your doctor if they have a collection program for pharmaceuticals. 3) Orange County Household Hazardous Waste Facilities are open Tuesday through Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. San Juan Capistrano - 32250 La Pata Ave, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675 (located at the Prima Deshecha landfill) Irvine - 6411 Oak Canyon, Irvine, CA 92618 (located in front of the Irvine City Dog Park)
Household Hazardous Waste	Household hazardous waste (HHW) includes household cleaners, paint, fertilizer, pesticides, oil, gasoline, pool chemicals, propane, medications, etc.  HHW is prohibited by State law to be thrown away in the garbage.  HHW must be properly disposed.  Please recycle your HHW as follows: 1) Orange County Household Hazardous Waste Facilities are open Tuesday through Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. San Juan Capistrano - 32250 La Pata Ave, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675 (located at the Prima Deshecha landfill) Irvine - 6411 Oak Canyon, Irvine, CA 92618 (located in front of the Irvine City Dog Park) Note: The Irvine HHW Facility also has a "Stop and Swap" program where you can take products that have been disposed of at the facility for reuse for free!  For more information on the Stop and Swap, click here. 2) Visit www.earth911.org for more locations. 3) Residents may call Curbside, Inc. at 800.449.7587 to schedule a household pickup of HHW.  Please call Curbside, Inc. for pricing and scheduling.

What types of items may be placed into residential/commercial recycling containers?

The following list contains the types of materials appropriate to recycle. Please contact CR&R for any specific questions about recycling at 949.728.0446.

What types of materials are illegal to throw in the trash?

The following items are illegal to throw into the trash in the State of California. For a complete list of all banned materials visit the California Integrated Waste Management Board.

Lights, Batteries, and Electronics

• Fluorescent lamps and tubes. Includes fluorescent tubes, compact fluorescent lamps, metal halide lamps, and sodium vapor lamps.
• Batteries. Includes all batteries, AAA, AA, C, D, button cell, 9-volt, and all others, both rechargeable and single use. Also lead-acid batteries such as car batteries.
• Electronic devices. Includes televisions and computer monitors, computers, printers, VCRs, cell phones, telephones, radios, and microwave ovens.
• Computer and television monitors. Most monitors are currently considered hazardous waste when they have lived their life and are ready for recycling or disposal, including cathode ray tube (CRT), liquid crystal diode (LCD), and plasma monitors.

Mercury-Containing Items

• Electrical switches and relays. These typically contain about 3.5 grams of mercury each. Mercury switches can be found in some chest freezers, pre-1972 washing machines, sump pumps, electric space heaters, clothes irons, silent light switches, automobile hood and trunk lights, and ABS brakes.
• Thermostats that contain mercury. There is a mercury inside the sealed glass "tilt switch" of the old style thermostats (not the newer electronic kind).
• Pilot light sensors. Mercury-containing switches are found in some gas appliances such as stoves, ovens, clothes dryers, water heaters, furnaces, and space heaters.
• Mercury gauges. Some gauges, such as barometers, manometers, blood pressure, and vacuum gauges contain mercury.
• Mercury thermometers. Mercury thermometers typically contain about a half gram of mercury. Many health clinics, pharmacies and doctor’s offices have thermometer exchange programs that will give you a new mercury-free fever thermometer in exchange for your old one.
• Mercury-added novelties. Examples include greeting cards that play music when opened; athletic shoes (made before 1997) with flashing lights in soles; and mercury maze games.

Household and Landscape Chemicals

• Flammables and poisons. Includes solvent-based (oil) paints and reactive and explosive materials.
• Acids, oxidizers, and bases. Includes some pool chemicals and cleaners.
• Pesticides and herbicides. Many pesticides and herbicides cannot be disposed in the trash. Consult the product label.

Paints and Solvents

• Latex paint.
• Oil-based paint (also listed under flammables).
• Nonempty aerosol paint or solvent cans (all nonempty aerosol cans are banned from the trash).
• Solvents. Includes materials such as paint thinners, finger nail polish remover, etc.

Building Materials

• Asbestos. Includes some older kinds of cement, roofing, flooring and siding. More information on asbestos in your home is available from the U.S. EPA.
• Treated Wood includes wood that is treated with chromium copper arsenate (CCA).

Automobile-Related

• Antifreeze.
• Batteries.
• Motor oil and filters.
• Tires. (Note that tires are not considered hazardous, but are banned from the trash for other reasons)

Other

• Compressed gas cylinders. Includes propane tanks used for BBQ or plumbing.
• Needles and sharps generated in home health care. Includes hypodermic needles, hypodermic needles with syringes, blades, needles with attached tubing, syringes contaminated with biohazardous waste, acupuncture needles, root canal files, broken glass items such as Pasteur pipettes, and blood vials.
• PCB-containing materials. Includes paint and ballasts that contain polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB).
• Photo waste (silver bearing).
• Nonempty aerosol cans that contain hazardous materials. Many products in aerosol cans are toxic. And many aerosol cans contain flammables, like butane, as propellants for products like paint. If your aerosol can is labeled with words like TOXIC or FLAMMABLE don’t put it in the trash unless it is completely empty.

Where can I dispose of “hazardous waste” and other materials?

There are four Household Hazardous Waste Collection centers in Orange County. Click below for location and operating hours information:
• Anaheim
• Huntington Beach
• Irvine
• San Juan Capistrano

The following link provides information on where residents of Rancho Santa Margarita can dispose of hazardous waste and other types of waste: California Earth 911.

The following link provides information on where businesses, schools, churches, non-profit organizations and other non-residential groups can dispose of hazardous waste and other types of waste: California Earth 911.

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