Mississippi area farmers with waste agricultural pesticides are invited to take part in a waste pesticide disposal event.
The upcoming collection day will be held on Tuesday, March 1 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the parking lot of the Leflore County Civic Center located at 200 Hwy 7 North in Greenwood.
Area farmers and residents are also invited to participate in an electronics recycling event that will be held in conjunction with the waste pesticide disposal event at the same location. Old electronics will be accepted until the trailer is full, so this is a first-come, first-served opportunity.
The one-time event offers farmers a no-cost, environmentally safe way to dispose of leftover pesticide products through a licensed contractor, according to the Mississippi State University Extension Service. There will be a contractor on site accepting agricultural waste products, and waste tires from the farm will also be accepted at the Leflore County Solid Waste Building, which is adjacent to the Civic Center at 308-B Highway 7 North.
Farmers may drop off up to 10 automobile/light truck sized tires and up to 2 tractor-sized tires for recycling. If a farmer has additional waste tires over this limit, the farmer may use the local county drop off site for the county in which they reside.
To take part, farmers should bring their agricultural waste pesticides, old electronics, and waste tires to the collection site between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. on March 1. No drop-offs before or after the designated times are allowed, and doing so could constitute illegal dumping. On the day of the event, participants will pull into the parking lot, and workers on-site will unload the chemicals.
There is no charge to Mississippi farmers, but farmers are responsible for safely transporting waste pesticides, electronics, and tires to the collection site. Waste pesticides include leftover, canceled, or otherwise unusable products such as insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, and plant growth regulators. No rinsates or pesticides in bulk containers larger than 55-gallon drums will be collected.
A licensed hazardous waste contractor will be on hand at the collection site and will collect, analyze, and dispose of or recycle the products out of state according to environmental laws and regulations. Greenwood Leflore Recycle Center will collect the old electronics such as computers, monitors, TVs, copiers, faxes, phones, and related products.
The program is coordinated by the Mississippi State University Extension Service in partnership with the Greenwood Leflore Recycle Center, with funds made available through the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality and the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce. For more information, contact the Leflore County Extension Service office at 662-453-6803
