Safely purge household of chemicals on Cup Day

FOR one day only, Greater Bendigo residents will be given the opportunity to dispose of a large number of common household chemicals without harming their health or the environment (including acids, disinfectants, drain cleaner, fertiliser and kerosene) for free.

Taking place at the Bendigo Livestock Exchange in Huntly from 9am to 1pm on the Bendigo Cup Day public holiday (Wednesday 29 October), other acceptable items to divest of include alkalis, ammonia-based cleaning products, cooking oil, glues and paint stripper.

Locals can also drop off aerosol cans, coolant, detergents, fire extinguishers, herbicides/weed killers, oven cleaner, solvents and transmission fluid.

The setup will be drive through and contactless.

City of Greater Bendigo acting resource recovery and education manager Sam Johnston said the Detox Your Home program is the safest way for residents to dispose of unwanted household chemicals that may be stored around their places of abode.

“Household chemicals can be dangerous, and (this) is a good opportunity to get rid of unwanted chemical products in a safe and environmentally friendly way,” he said.

“You must register to attend and those who fail to do this will be turned away at the gate – so, please take a couple of minutes to register if you would like to participate.”

The collected material will be treated/recycled or disposed of safely by a specialist team.

Detox Your Home is administered by Sustainability Victoria in partnership with the City.

To find a full list of accepted chemicals and to register, visit the Sustainability Victoria website.