Businesses, Residents Drop Off Toxic Waste

They came bearing paint, pesticides, household cleaners and assorted icky goo.

In all, people deposited more than 9,200 pounds of toxic waste on Friday and 141,000 pounds on Saturday during a toxics drop-off event sponsored by the city and county.

Part of an effort to reduce waste by half by the year 2000, the event drew participants from 43 businesses Friday and attracted 1,455 residents the following day.

The two-day program is the largest of its kind in Ventura County.

Because drop-off appointments were required, the average waiting time for Saturday’s event was less than 10 minutes. As part of the city’s effort to reuse waste rather than dumping it in a landfill or burning it, some of the collected materials (paint and household products) were offered back to participants in a designated area.

The next free opportunity for county residents to drop off toxic waste will be Saturday in Simi Valley and June 20 in Moorpark. For information, call 583-6321 and 529-6864, Ext. 333, respectively.