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Household Hazardous Waste
New Hanover County makes “doing the right thing” easy by providing residents with multiple options for recycling waste and diverting it from landfill disposal. Residents can bring household hazardous waste and electronics to the permanent facility. There is no cost to county residents to use this service. Due to permit restrictions, we cannot accept hazardous chemicals from businesses or out-of-county residents. For households or businesses with a large quantity of electronics (10 or more large electronic devices such as TVs), please call ahead for a drop-off appointment.
HazWagon
New Hanover County also has a mobile household hazardous waste unit called the HazWagon, stationed at three locations - Ogden Park, Wrightsville Beach, and Carolina Beach - each week. In addition, beginning May 4, 2019, the HazWagon expanded services to Kure Beach on the first Saturday of each month (major holidays excluded). HazWagon locations & times of collection are below.
New Hanover County residents can bring toxic materials and electronics to the HazWagon free of charge, as well as unpackaged food waste for the county’s composting program, view more information on the composting page.
Notes
- Please have your ID ready, we cannot accept materials from out-of-county residents due to permit restrictions!
- No more than 10 gallons of liquid waste and no more than two TVs can be brought to the HazWagon at a time.
- When storing chemicals in temporary containers, always mark the container with a description of the contents. This will help you avoid accidentally mixing potentially reactive chemicals and helps keep our attendants safe.
- Acids (bowl cleaners, driveway cleaners, etc.)
- Aerosols
- Antifreeze
- Ballasts
- Batteries - including alkaline, zinc-carbon, zinc-air, lithium, sealed lead-acid, and any type of rechargeable battery (NiMH, Ni-Cad, Li-Ion, etc.). We do not accept lithium batteries from electric vehicles
- Caustics (drain cleaners, lye, borax)
- CDs, DVDs, and VHS tapes
- Cell phones (including chargers, batteries, and earbuds)
- Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFL), Tubes, and Bulbs from residential properties only (Maximum 8′ length on CFL tubes)
- Cooking Oil
- Electronics (“if it has an electrical cord or runs off of batteries, we’ll take it!” Exceptions include large appliances, such as refrigerators, stoves, dishwashers, and air conditioning units, which can be taken at no charge to the landfill). Note: we will accept a maximum of ten large electronic items (television sets, monitors, or CPUs) per week, per customer. We do not accept “stripped” televisions or computers. If you live within the city limits of Wilmington, you have the option to call 341-7875 to schedule a curbside pickup of your unwanted electronics
- Holiday lights - just the lights, not the trees!
- Hoverboards: Residents wishing to turn in self-balancing, two-wheel scooters (aka “hoverboards”) due to product recalls are encouraged to bring the devices to:
Environmental Management administrative office
3002 U.S. Highway 421 North
Wilmington, NC 28401
Hours
Monday through Friday
8 am to 5 pm
A receipt for the device, indicating that it was delivered to a recycling facility, will be prepared and presented to the customer to support reimbursement claims - Fertilizers - solid or liquid
- Flares, road (No projectile/launched flares such as marine flares)
- Food Waste (residents can bring unpackaged food waste to the HazWagon or the landfill’s composter)
- Fuels (See note)
- Gel Fuels (like Sterno)
- Helium Tanks (small disposable types only)
- Herbicides / Fungicides (weed killer, ground clear)
- Household Cleaners (bleach, ammonia, tile/grout cleaners, glass cleaner, disinfectants, all-purpose cleaners, etc.)
- Mercury Thermostats and Thermometers
- Motor Oil and Oil Filters (no 55-gallon drums accepted)
- Paint - latex and oil-based (solidified paint can be disposed of in the trash and will not be accepted). For paint that originates from commercial painters, we can only accept latex paint - no oil-based paint.
- Pesticides - solid or liquid
- Propane Tanks (20 pounds only)
- Sharps (needles)
- Smoke Detectors
- Solvents (degreasers, parts cleaners, paint thinners)
- Stains, varnishes, and sealers
Note: If you need your fuel container back, don’t worry - we’ll empty the container and have it back to you in minutes! Please note that this only applies to the main facility and not the mobile unit. If visiting the mobile unit, the attendant cannot pour out liquid wastes and return your container due to safety concerns.
Please have your ID ready - we cannot accept materials from any out-of-county residents due to permit restrictions!
Please take “white goods” (refrigerators, washing machines, freezers, etc.) to the New Hanover County landfill for recycling.
- Asbestos-containing materials
- Explosives & Ammunition
- Prescription Medications
- Small Propane Tanks (camp stove size)
- Regulated Medical Waste
For alternatives to disposal, visit the alternatives page.
New Hanover County Environmental Management Department has partnered with New Hanover County Public Libraries, University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW), Cape Fear Community College (CFCC), and the Fort Fisher Aquarium to provide satellite collection points for battery recycling.
In addition to the main facility at 3002 US Highway 421 North and the mobile HazWagon, residents can bring used batteries for recycling to other locations. In addition to all New Hanover County recycling drop-off sites view a list of other locations.
All materials brought to the Household Hazardous Waste permanent facility and HazWagon are either recycled, repurposed, neutralized, used for alternative power generation, or disposed of in accordance with state and federal law.
Did You Know
One gallon of motor oil can contaminate 1,000,000 gallons of fresh water. Screens on older television sets can contain up to 10 pounds of lead.
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Household Hazardous Waste
Physical Address
3002 Highway 421 North
Wilmington, NC 28401
Phone: 910-798-4400
Hours
Monday through Friday
8 a.m. to 3 p.m.Saturday
8 am to noonClosed on the following holidays:
New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day,
Labor Day, the day before Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving Day,
and December 24, 25, and 26th.Mobile HazWagon Hours
10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the following locations:
- Mondays at Ogden Park (near the ball fields)
- Wednesdays at Wrightsville Beach Municipal Complex
- Fridays at the Carolina Beach Mike Chappell Park
(in the south side of the park across from the tennis courts) - First Saturday of each month at Kure Beach Town Hall