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.

A van pulling behind it a trailer with the words HazWagon on the side.