Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day will return for the first time in three years.

The waste collection day is slated from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 25 at the American Styrenics Employee Park, at 17401 Route 7.

Sponsored by the SouthEastern Ohio Joint Solid Waste Management District, the collection day gives all residents in Washington County and counties covered by the waste district an opportunity to safely and properly dispose of toxic waste and chemicals.

District Coordinator Mike Reiter said the three-year hiatus was due to the expenditures the district had over that time.

“The collection event is very expensive,” said Reiter. “It cost the district a lot of money to have the chemicals incinerated and recycled.”

He said the cost for collection day is about $75,000 just for Washington County.

Reiter said the chemicals are transported to Cincinnati, where they are disposed of through incineration and recycling.

County residents can drop of items such as insecticides, herbicides, pesticides, rat poison, antifreeze, medicines, used oil, watch batteries, transmission fluid, household cleaners, auto batteries, grease, fluorescent light bulbs, paint and paint thinner, gasoline, batteries, radiator cleaner, creosote, bleach, moth balls, pool chemicals, wood strippers, varnish, ammonia, degreasers, photo chemicals, propane cylinders, paint, stains, solvents, kerosene, brake fluid, engine cleaners, metal polish, sealant, fertilizers, oil filters, diesel, glue, lighter fluid, automotive freon, and adhesives.

“The event is entirely free to the public, and we’re the only outlet that disposes of chemicals for free,” said Reiter. “If a resident misses the collection day, as long as they live within the six counties covered by the waste district, they can go there to dispose of their items.”

Reiter said the district covers Muskingum, Monroe, Morgan, Guernsey, Noble, and Washington counties.

He said the collection dates, times, and locations are available for each county on the district’s website, wasteabate.org/special-collection/

There will be separate collection events for appliances, electronics, and tires, which are available on the website. Some of the dates have not yet been determined.

“There are usually hundreds of people who show up to dispose of their items, it’s a super busy day,” he said.

Reiter wanted to thank Kraton Polymers and American Styrenics for their donations and assistance.

Amber Phipps can be reached at aphipps@newsandsentinel.com