It's time to take care of those toxins: Dealing with dangerous chemicals

Spring cleaning can bring surprises, especially if you tackle that dark corner in the garage or basement where all the lost garden chemicals hide.

If you're like many gardeners, you may be holding onto dangerous chemicals banned by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. They may be even more dangerous because of how they're stored — in torn boxes, leaky plastic jars or glass bottles with rusted-shut caps and illegible labels.

Disposing of chemicals

Handle the disposal of these toxic products carefully. One of the worst ways — besides dumping them into Puget Sound — would be to include them in your next garage sale.

I recently found a cardboard tube filled with rose insect killer that contained a wicked combination: DDT; malathion; 1,1-bis (chlorophenyl); lindane; chlordane; dinitro; captan; and sulphur, with 54 percent of the package containing active (pest-killing) ingredients. DDT was banned in the United States in 1972. So why did this tube sit around for 35 years?

Gardeners can be hoarders, believing in the "we may need it someday" theory. Or perhaps they inherited the chemicals when they purchased a new home. In any case, pesticides that you buy at hardware, big-box and nurseries must be treated as hazardous waste — yes, that includes the weed 'n feed lawn fertilizers with weed killers.

To dispose of them properly, contact your local county solid-waste utility. In King County, call the Household Hazards Line at 206-296-4692 or consult the Web site (www.govlink.org/hazwaste/index.cfm), which describes what can be brought and how to reach the disposal sites in North Seattle, South Seattle and Factoria.

It's not wise to rely on the printed disposal instructions on the label; they may not meet your county's standards.

Getting them there

The Household Hazards Line recommends the following rules for transporting pesticides:

• Don't mix products.

• Keep them in their original containers.

• Label with their contents if not in the original containers.

• Secure the packages during transport so they won't tip or leak.

• Put them outside the passenger compartment of the vehicle.

If the product has become completely unidentifiable, wrap it carefully in newspaper and attach a large sign stating how old it is (if you know) and that you don't know what it is.

Use gloves and wear protective clothing, such as long sleeves and long pants. If dealing with liquids, wear safety goggles. If any liquid spills, soak it up with kitty litter and bag the result as hazardous waste, labeling it.

Storing chemicals

Cleaning out your garden shed or garage also means providing secure storage for remaining chemicals: fertilizers, weed killers, insect killers and fungicides. Locked cabinets in cool, dry areas are mandatory. And be sure to keep records on how you choose and use pesticides — professionals have to do it, and so should the rest of us.

Unused pesticides, even those still legal for use, should be disposed of if you have no plan to use them, if the package is damaged, if children or pets could get into them or if anyone in the household has a compromised immune system.

Dispose of anything labeled with the following names — all have been banned by the EPA because their household use poses unreasonable risks. These common names will appear at the bottom of the label where it indicates "active ingredients." Be sure to wear gloves when handling, and be cautious with any open or broken packages.

These chemicals have been banned, as listed on the Hazardous Waste Management site for King County:

• Diazinon

• Chlorpyrifos

• DDT

• Creosote

• Lindane

• Silvex

• Aldrin

• Dieldrin

• Mirex 2,4,5-T

• Chlordane

• Kepone

• Pentachlorophenol

• Toxaphen

Garden expert Mary Robson, retired area horticulture agent for Washington State University/King County Cooperative Extension, appears regularly in digs and in Practical Gardener in Northwest Life on Wednesdays. Her e-mail is marysophia@olympus.net.