HUNTINGTON BEACH : Hazardous Waste Disposal Site Opens

A disposal site where residents can dump old paint, motor oil and other household hazardous waste opened Thursday.

The center is a one-year pilot project coordinated by the Orange County Fire Department’s Hazardous Materials Program office. It aims to encourage residents to dispose of their household hazardous wastes at the site rather than to illegally dump them with regular trash.

Because long lines are expected during the site’s first few weeks of operation, officials are encouraging residents to wait a week or two before coming to the center. Activity was light on opening day, but large crowds are expected today, Saturday and perhaps throughout next week, program spokeswoman Jaimy Gentry said Thursday.

After the opening of the county’s first such facility last July in Anaheim, patrons had to wait 30 minutes to an hour because of the crowd, Gentry said.

There is no charge to dump at the site, but patrons must show a driver’s license or other proof of Orange County residency. All county households share the cost of the program--46 cents per ton of waste at the two sites--through larger trash bills, Gentry said.

The facility accepts oil and latex paint products, motor oil, antifreeze, car and furniture polish, swimming pool treatment solutions, pesticides and herbicides, chemical-based household cleaners and wood preservatives. Each vehicle may dump up to five gallons or 50 pounds of these products.

All wastes except motor oil and antifreeze must be transported in their original containers. Oil and antifreeze must be stored in leakproof containers with lids.

Materials such as biological or radioactive waste, hair spray cans, ammunition and explosives are forbidden at the site. And, because the program is targeting household wastes, materials are not accepted from organizations, businesses, schools, churches or government agencies, Gentry said.

If the pilot programs prove successful during their first year, they will become permanent centers. County disposal sites are tentatively planned for San Juan Capistrano and a yet to be determined location, Gentry said.

Activity has been brisk at the Anaheim facility, she said.

The Huntington Beach facility is at the Rainbow Recycling &- Disposal Inc. site at 17121 Nichols St. Collection hours are 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays.

Anyone with questions about whether certain materials are accepted at either site may call the county’s hazardous materials hot line at (714) 744-0516.