"Previous to this (law), batteries, lamps, thermostats and consumer waste were actually permitted in landfill disposal," said Leslie Stobbe, Milpitas public information specialist.

California Department of Toxic Substances Control reports state that in 2000 new regulations were adopted banning "universal waste," called U-waste or E-waste, from trash, mainly including household items considered hazardous to people and the environment.

But an exemption and extension of those regulations was adopted, allowing city and county waste management agencies time to develop procedures to handle various kinds of waste items, according to state reports.

The exemption from the rules was granted to households and small businesses with less than 50 employees, reports state. The exemption ended Feb. 8.

Items designated as universal waste include:

Common batteries: AA, AAA, C cells, D cells and button batteries (hearing aid batteries).

Fluorescent tubes and bulbs and other mercury-containing lamps: fluorescent light tubes and bulbs, high intensity discharge, metal halide, sodium and neon bulbs.

Thermostats: old-style with the sealed glass "tilt switch," which contain mercury (the newer electronic kind are not included).

Electronic devices: televisions and computer monitors (which were already prohibited from household trash), computers, printers, video cassette recorders, cell phones, telephones, radios and microwave ovens.

Some universal waste items were previously banned from household disposal. These items include:

Electrical switches and relays mercury switches that can be found in some chest freezers, pre-1972 washing machines, sump pumps, electric space heaters, clothes irons, silent light switches, automobile hood and trunk lights, and ABS brakes.

Pilot light sensors mercury-containing switches found in some gas appliances such as stoves, ovens, clothes dryers, water heaters, furnaces and space heaters.

Mercury gauges some gauges, such as barometers, manometers, blood pressure and vacuum gauges contain mercury.

Novelties examples include greeting cards that play music when opened, athletic shoes (made before 1997) with flashing lights in soles and mercury maze games.

Mercury thermometers mercury thermometers typically contain about a half-gram of mercury.

Non-empty aerosol cans that contain hazardous materials many products in aerosol cans are toxic and many aerosol cans contain flammables, like butane, as propellants for products like paint.

If your aerosol can is labeled with words like "toxic" or "flammable," do not put it in the trash unless it is completely empty.

According to Stobbe, Santa Clara County manages the remediation of household wastes.

The county and 14 cities, including Milpitas, participate in the county sponsored Household Hazardous Waste program. The county and cities share costs based on the number of households served from each jurisdiction according to the county's Department of Environmental Health Web site.

Milpitas will have scheduled drop-off events for consumer waste. The next event, "Recycle For Breast Cancer," takes place this weekend.

The consumer electronics dropoff will be held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Saf Keep Storage, 1680 S. Main St.

Stobbe said Milpitas residents will also be able to drop off consumer waste during up-coming events in the city.

"The drop-off events as they occur are the best way to capture these wastes," she said, adding drop-off events will be publicized by the city as they are scheduled.

For more information, visit the city's Web site, www.ci.milpitas.ca.gov.

For additional information about Santa Clara County's Household Hazardous Waste Program, call 299-7300 or visit www.sccgov.org.

By Ian Bauer
http://www.themilpitaspost.com/local/ci_3539633