
Source: Missouri Household Hazardous Waste Telephone Advice
Manual, April 1994, Household Hazardous Waste Project
From Trash to Treasure
Hazardous products may be toxic, corrosive, explosive, or flammable. Many
products used around the home are hazardous and therefore difficult to dispose of
properly. If a hazardous product is used up, there is no hazardous waste to
dispose.
Improper disposal of hazardous wastes poses a threat to our health and the environment.
It is better to carefully use up unwanted household hazardous products than to
dispose of them in the trash or down the drain. But if you do not wish to use
the products or cannot use them, what other options are there besides disposal?
One option is to share these products with responsible adults in your neighborhood,
church or civic group.
The Stored Waste Abatement Program, or SWAP, links people with usable but
unwanted products with others who would use those products.
SWAP does not include pharmaceuticals, industrial or commercial hazardous
wastes, radioactive wastes, or banned or restricted pesticides.
As a SWAP coordinator, you will not be handling the product, but will organize
the SWAP so that the participants exchange products directly with one another. By
volunteering to coordinate a SWAP, you are educating people and helping to protect our
environment.
For more information, contact:
Household Hazardous Waste Project (HHWP)
1031 E. Battlefield, Suite 214
Springfield, MO 65807
(417) 889-5000
SWAP Menu
How to Organize a SWAP
1. Educate yourself about the health and environmental problems concerning
household hazardous products.
2. Copy the SWAP Home Inventory Form and Home Inventory
Instructions provided below. Distribute one to each member of your group.
The SWAP Home Inventory Form has safety guidelines to follow while
undertaking the inventory of household hazardous products.
3. Inform the members of your group about the problem of household hazardous
waste, how SWAP is a part of the solution, and the SWAP procedures. Carefully
read aloud to the group members the safety guidelines presented on the SWAP
Home Inventory Instructions. Strongly emphasize safe handling, storage and
transportation of household hazardous products to the members of your group.
4. Set a specific deadline for accepting the SWAP Home Inventory Forms and a
specific time period during which the exchanges may occur. We suggest that
the exchange period last no longer than a month in order that the information
remains valid. If the interest is great, the SWAP can be repeated.
5. Determine how the members will return the SWAP form to you. Some
possibilities include providing a stamp and addressed envelope or collecting
the forms at the next meeting.
6. Compile the list of materials available for exchange by the members of the
group. There are a variety of ways to complete this list and the best method
may depend upon the size of your group. One way is to list every participant's
name and phone number and the material they will like to share.
7. Display this list in a prominent place or distribute it to the group members.
Those who which to acquire these products can note the name and number of members
having products to share.
SWAP Menu
Be Part of SWAP!
Inventory your home for unwanted but usable household hazardous products that
you are willing to share with others. The SWAP Home Inventory Form lists common
household hazardous products. If you have products not mentioned on
the form that you wish to share, please note them in the section "Other." Record the
brand name and the amount of the hazardous product you have on the form. While
surveying your home, record on a different sheet of paper any products you wish to
receive to compare later with the available products. Return the Home Inventory Form to
the SWAP coordinator. The coordinator will compile a list of products available for
exchange and each owner's name and phone number. Check the list for available
products you may wish to use up.
SWAP Menu
Important Safety Guidelines for Inventorying Your House
- Do not eat, drink, or smoke while conducting the inventory. Traces of
hazardous chemicals can be carried from hand to mouth. If the product is
flammable , smoking may start a fire.
- If you find a product that is leaking and you have touch it, wash your hand
immediately. Then wear heavy rubber or nitrile gloves for handling. Place the
leaking product in its original container upright into a plastic bucket with a
tight-fitting lid surrounded by plenty of clay-based absorbent (such as kitty
litter) which will absorb the leaking product. On the outside of the plastic
container write the contents, amount, and date, plus the words "Danger" or "Poison".
- Wash your hand thoroughly when you have finished the SWAP Home
Inventory Form.
- Check to see if your hazardous products are stored out of the reach of children
and pets.
- Be sure that flammables are stored away from sources of sparks, heat, and
flames. Check that aerosols cans are stored away form high-temperature areas.
SWAP Menu
Home Inventory Form
PRODUCT | BRAND NAME | AMOUNT |
Living Room |
Furniture polish | | |
Other | | |
Kitchen/Bathroom |
Drain cleaner | | |
Oven cleaner | | |
Floor cleaner | | |
Metal cleaner | | |
Disinfectant | | |
Ammonia | | |
Nail polish remover | | |
Other | | |
Laundry Room |
Bleach | | |
Other | | |
Laundry Detergent | | |
Workbench |
Caulking materials | | |
Paint | | |
Varnish | | |
Paint thinner | | |
Furniture stripper | | |
Glue | | |
Other | | |
|
PRODUCT | BRAND NAME | AMOUNT |
Garage |
Gasoline | | |
Kerosene | | |
Antifreeze | | |
Windshield wiper fluid | | |
Other | | |
Lawn |
Weed killers | | |
Insecticides | | |
Bug repellent | | |
Flea spray | | |
Fertilizer | | |
Other | | |
Around the House |
Pool chemicals | | |
Photography chemicals | | |
Art/hobby supplies | | |
Other | | |
Other Products |
| | |
| | |
| | |
| | |
|
SWAP Menu
Selecting & Exchanging Household Hazardous Products
- Only exchange products in their original containers with labels that clearly
identify the contents and safe use instructions. Do not exchange products in
containers that are leaking.
- Never exchange a product that has been mixed.
- Do not exchange pesticides without contacting your county extension agent to
determine if your pesticide is now considered banned or restricted.
- Have lids and caps tightly sealed.
- Beware of aerosols cans without caps. Package them with newspaper around
the tops.
- Keep combustibles out of direct sunlight and away from heat sources.
- Place incompatible products in separate boxes. Flammable, corrosives, and
poisons should all be separated. The product label will indicate its category.
- Place the products in your car trunk or be certain there is good ventilation if
you transport them in the passenger compartment. Do not smoke while
transporting hazardous materials.
- Wash your hand thoroughly after handling products.
SWAP Menu