Free Household Hazardous Waste Collection

Published on June 11, 2015

Looking for a free and convenient way to dispose of hazardous wastes that are collecting around your house?  Then mark your calendars for Sat., June 13, as Placer County will host a free one-day drop-off event in Colfax. 

The event will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Colfax High School, in the parking lot off of Ben Taylor Road.

The event is sponsored by Placer County and Recology Auburn Placer and is open to Placer County residents only, including those who live in cities (I.D. required). 

Household hazardous waste (HHW) should not be disposed of with regular garbage. 

Acceptable items at the Colfax drop-off event include paints, used motor oil/filters, automotive fluids, vehicle and small household batteries, unused medications excluding controlled substances, sharps (syringes and lancets properly stored in rigid plastic containers), varnishes, solvents, other flammables, herbicides, pesticides, and compressed-gas cylinders up to five gallons.

Unacceptable items include ammunition and explosives, PCBs, medical waste other than sharps and medications, electronic waste and radioactive materials. 

A complete list of acceptable items, transport tips and techniques and a map to the event are available at Placer recycle.

There is a limit of 15 gallons or 125 pounds of waste per vehicle. For more information on the event, call (530) 889-6846 or email recycling.

Can’t make the June 13 event?  

Free HHW disposal is available daily in western Placer County at the Western Placer Waste Management Authority HHW facility. It is open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is located on Athens Avenue about 1.5 miles past the Thunder Valley Casino Resort, just before Fiddyment Road.

For more information please call (916) 543-3960 or visit WPWMA. 

The Auburn, Foresthill, and Meadow Vista transfer stations accept some materials such as batteries, fluorescent light tubes, and electronic waste at no charge from Placer County residents. The Auburn transfer station also accepts sharps, lead-acid batteries, five-gallon compressed gas cylinders, latex paints, used motor oil and oil filters at no charge from Placer County residents. For more information and facility hours, please call 530-885-3735 or visit Placer recycle.

The City of Colfax collects oil and oil filters at its yard on the corner of Rising Sun and Ben Taylor roads.  The facility is open from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturdays.  There is a limit of five gallons or 50 pounds.  If you have questions, please call (530) 346-2313.