MONROE — Green County will offer another Clean Sweep Hazardous Materials Collection Program for county farmers and residents starting on May 2 and running through Oct. 31. The Clean Sweep collection site is located at the Green County Landfill, W2002 County SS, Brodhead.  

The Clean Sweep program is an opportunity to dispose of banned products or supplies damaged by moisture or contamination. This will be the 13th year that Green County has offered a Clean Sweep Collection Program. A total of over 125,000 pounds of hazardous material has been collected through the previous collections in Green County.

All Green County residents will be able to dispose of materials at the landfill during normal business hours from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays, and from 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. on the following designated Saturdays: May 2, May 30, July 11 and Aug. 1.   

Farmers will be able to dispose of up to 200 pounds and homeowners can dispose of up to 50 pounds of hazardous materials free of charge without pre-registering. Farmers and homeowners wishing to dispose of more than these amounts need to pre-register by calling the Green County landfill at 608-897-8605. All items should be properly identified and materials will only be accepted by authorized personnel during normal business hours.  

Examples of hazardous items that will be accepted include: oven cleaners, spot removers and drain cleaners; Herbicides like Atrazine, Round-up, Banvel, 2,4-D, Silvex, brush killers and many others; Insecticides including Diazinon, DDT, Chlordane, Thimet, Furadan, Sevin and others; Fungicides including Captan, lead, marine and auto paint, solvents, animal health products, mercury, degreasers, roofing tar, wood finishes, oil based paint and stains, hydraulic fluid, pool chemicals, old gasoline, paint strippers, and cadmium and lithium batteries. 

Items that will not be accepted include tires, latex paint, firearms and ammunition, Freon 11 and 12 radioactive material, compressed gas cylinders, yard waste, antifreeze, waste motor oil, fluorescent tubes, recyclable materials or biological wastes.   

Latex paint can be safely disposed of in the regular garbage as long as it is hardened. Small amounts of left over latex or oil based paint can be hardened by simply opening the can and letting it dry out in a well ventilated area. Once it has hardened it can safely be put into the regular garbage. 

For larger amounts of paint left over, a hardener can be purchased at paint stores to put in the paint that will harden the entire amount. Another option is to line a box with a plastic bag, add kitty litter or other absorbent material, and then pour the paint over the material, let it dry and then place the bag into the regular garbage. 

Only Green County residents can participate in this program. For more information on the 2020 collection program go the Extension Green County website at: http://green.extension.wisc.edu or call the Extension Office at 608-328-9440.