AUGUSTA — Unusable pesticides, such as weed killers and bug killers, can be dangerous to humans, pets and the environment, and the state has set up free disposal in October in four locations.
Pesticides can become unusable because of age, freezing or evaporation, or because their legal registration changes. Improper disposal of these products can contaminate land and water resources, including drinking water.
Homeowners, family-owned farms, and greenhouses can dispose of unusable pesticides through the free Obsolete Pesticide Collection sponsored by the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry’s Board of Pesticides Control and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. The program is funded through product registration fees.
Participants must register by Friday, Oct. 5; drop-ins are not permitted. Collections will occur in Presque Isle, Bangor, Augusta and Portland.
DACF Commissioner Walt Whitcomb is encouraging Mainers to seize the free opportunity. “It is not uncommon for people to find themselves with obsolete pesticides and not know how to dispose of them. It’s important for the protection of the public, wildlife and environmental health that they are dealt with properly and not thrown in the trash or down the drain.”
To register and for more information about temporary storage and transportation of obsolete pesticides, go to the pesticide control website at thinkfirstspraylast.org, or call 207-287-2731.
