Entrance to the new EDCO hazardous waste recycling facility. Photos by Sarah Bennett

Los Angeles County’s second permanent hazardous and electronic waste collection facility will open for the first time this weekend in Signal Hill, giving residents a monthly site at which to dispose of everything from used motor oil and cleaning products to medicines and VCRs–all without ever having to leave their car. 

The new EDCO Environmental Collection Center is on the same site as EDCO’s year-old Recycling and Transfer Center and was made possible through a partnership between the cities of Long Beach and Signal Hill as well as the County of Los Angeles and the family-owned EDCO disposal company. 

At a Thursday morning ribbon-cutting ceremony, County Supervisor Don Knabe, Signal Hill Mayor Tina Hansen and representatives from the City of Long Beach as well as L.A. County’s departments of sanitation and public works spoke of the benefits of having a permanent facility to collect hazardous and other hard-to-dispose-of materials that are usually locally collected at annual or semi-annual events.

“We now have a new, more effective way for residents to dispose of household waste,” said Knabe. “Most people have to wait to get rid of it annually, but now residents can make monthly drop-offs at EDCO.”

An example of items that can be collected at the facility. 

Mike Conway, Long Beach’s outgoing Director of Public Works told of how this project began in 2007 when the City had plans to build a city-owned hazardous waste and e-waste collection facility across the street from where EDCO is now. Instead of spending $3 million to build its own facility, however, Conway says the City decided to partner with EDCO–which then brought in the County of Los Angeles. According to public works officials, the City of Long Beach contributed $260,000 from a state grant and residents benefit from a current facility much larger than the one the City had planned to build on its own.

“We found it to be a beneficial partnership to work with EDCO to consolidate efforts into a single location. It was less expensive and generated quicker results to benefit the citizens,” Conway said. “In 2012, Long Beach residents made 4,500 car trips on a semi-annual basis to waste sites. The benefit is to be able to come here monthly and have a location to dispose of things that will keep them out of our beaches and our recreational waters. This facility is an extremely important asset.”

The Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County will operate the Environmental Collection Center through a sub contractor called Clean Harbors which said that 80%-100% of waste processed at the facility will be recycled, all of it in the United States. Paint, for example, can be recycled into new paint; the elemental mercury removed from light bulbs to be reused; and lead from all e-waste products can be smelted for reuse as well.

The District estimates that each year, the county collects 15 million pounds of hazardous and electronic waste at its annual mobile collection events. For the City of Long Beach, the new Signal Hill facility will replace the annual collection drive held at Veterans Stadium. 

Environmental Collection Center at EDCO Recycling & Transfer is located at 2755 California Ave. It will be open the second Saturday of each month from 9AM-2PM. For more information click here. 

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