Victoria Herrero-Garcia, a Durango resident, waited for two hours to drop off electronics and propane tanks collected over years of camping, but the wait was worth it, she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it should happen more often, instead of once a year. Definitely more (drop-off) locations would be helpful, too,\u201d Herrero-Garcia said. \u201cMy daughter is saying more shade. It was hot.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hazardous materials, like cleaning products, paint thinners and aerosols, can be toxic, corrosive, highly reactive or flammable \u2013 and hard to dispose of properly. If disposed of incorrectly, hazardous waste can pollute ground or surface water and pose a threat to wildlife and human health, according to the city of Durango website.<\/p>\n
The city of Durango and La Plata County partnered to host the household hazardous waste event this year. ACTenviro, a hazardous waste disposal company, managed the event with support from PaintCare, a nonprofit that helps with paint recycling.<\/p>\n
City staff members did not respond to questions Saturday about the likelihood of additional events.<\/p>\n During the event, vehicles wove from turning lanes on Main Avenue, through the Durango High School parking lot, next to La Plata County Senior Services and into the fairgrounds parking lot.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople were upset about the wait times. I don\u2019t think they anticipated as many people,\u201d said Sgt. Will Sweetwood with the Durango Police Department. \u201cOverall, I think it was a success. \u2026 It just showed the enthusiasm of Durango residents to properly dispose of their environmentally hazardous materials.\u201d<\/p>\n ACTenviro collection crews gathered waste from people\u2019s cars and sorted it for proper recycling. Both collection crews and residents were wearing face coverings to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, said Jared Pollack, a sales manager with ACTenviro.<\/p>\n The event was still going strong about two hours after it was supposed to close. They had expected closer to 500 vehicles at the event, Pollack said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe biggest issue, for us, was because we\u2019re still in the COVID pandemic. Everybody and their sister has been working on house and lawn projects,\u201d he said, adding that most vehicles were fully loaded with materials.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re feeling tired with smiles,\u201d Pollack said. \u201cThe residents were definitely taken care of.\u201d<\/p>\n