Lurking in every household are materials hazardous to our health and to our environment. On average, households contain between three and 10 gallons of hazardous items. Without properly storing or disposing these harmful materials, they can be very dangerous to our water supply.

"Unfortunately, it can be very damaging when residents pour materials such as paint thinner, or lye-based oven cleaner down the drain," stated Joel Kessler, chairman of the Plainview Water District's Board of Commissioners. "Most people don't realize how hazardous common household items can be to our drinking water."

To help you determine how to handle your potentially dangerous household products, Plainview Water Commissioners Kessler, Edward Shulroff and Kevin Langberg are pleased to offer the following information:

What is a hazardous material?

The Environmental Protection Agency considers a substance hazardous if it can catch fire, react or explode when mixed with other substances, if it is corrosive, or if it is toxic. This defines many items that you are probably storing right now in your garage, basement, bathroom or kitchen. Some items-like paint thinner or car batteries-are pretty obvious. There are many others, though, like polishes, insecticides and glues, which you may not think of.

How should hazardous materials be disposed of?

One of the worst ways to dispose of hazardous materials is to "just dump them down the drain." Wastewater treatment plants are not designed to handle many types of hazardous wastes.

Disposing of hazardous wastes with your normal trash is also dangerous. Most landfills are not equipped to accept hazardous waste material. Hazardous wastes improperly disposed of in a landfill can pollute the environment through groundwater, surface water and air. So what should be done with your household hazardous waste material?

First, reduce the amount.

Following these suggestions can help to reduce the amount of hazardous wastes in your household:

· Before you buy a product, read the label. Once you buy something, you become responsible for disposing of it properly.

· Read and follow directions on how to use a product and dispose of the container (there is good reason why labels say "do not incinerate" or "do not mix with bleach").

· Use safer substitutes whenever possible.

Second, take care of the wastes.

Recycling is an excellent way of handling some hazardous wastes. Used motor oil, paint thinners and some other solvents can be refined and reused just as aluminum cans are. The Town of Oyster Bay can assist you in recycling or with the proper disposal of household chemicals. Call the Town's Recycling Hotline at (516) 755-1839 for more information.

Third, be careful what you pour down the drain.

Plainview Water Commissioners Joel Kessler, Edward Shulroff and Kevin Langberg have compiled the following list identifying many of the typical household products that should never be poured down the drain:

Oven cleaners (lye-based)

Nail polish (solidified)

Nail polish remover (solidified)

Auto body repair products

Paints: latex, oil, auto, model

Paint thinner and strippers

Paint primers

Turpentine or varnish

Shoe polish

Wood preservatives

Fertilizers

Insecticides of all kinds

Poisons of all kinds

Dry cleaning solvents

Fiberglass epoxy

Lighter fluid

Photographic chemicals (unmixed)

Please call the Plainview Water District at 931-6469 if you have any questions.