SAIPAN – For residents rebuilding or cleaning up typhoon-damaged home or buildings, the EPA has provided instructions and guidance for the safe remove of household hazardous waste.

Be alert for leaking containers and household chemicals, such as caustic drain cleaners and chlorine bleach.

• Don’t combine chemicals to avoid dangerous or violent reactions.
• Don’t dump chemicals down storm sewers, drains or toilets.
• Don’t burn household chemicals.
• Keep children and pets away from leaking or spilled chemicals.
• Mark and set aside unbroken containers until they can be properly disposed of. To prevent leakage, broken or damaged containers should be placed in a secondary container and marked and labeled for easy identification.

The Bureau of Environmental and Coastal Quality, in conjunction with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, will be sponsoring Household Hazardous Waste collection centers in the weeks to come.  Additional information will be publicized as these collection centers are readied.  In the interim, if you have questions or concerns, please call BECQ at (670) 664-8500.

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.