Get Rid of Old Pesticides...For Free!

If you are an ag operation in Hillsborough County and have any unwanted or unusable pesticides that you would like to legally get rid of we have an opportunity for you.  Hillsborough County agricultural operations can dispose of stored pesticides that are out-of-date, suspended, or unusable during an Agriculture Pesticide Collection on Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016 from 8 a.m. - 2 p.m. at EQ Tampa, 7202 E. 8th Ave. in Tampa.  There will be no charge for dropping off chemicals and no questions asked.  There will be a very brief survey to help us gauge the value of this type of program for the future.
 
This program, hosted in partnership between Hillsborough County Economic Development Agriculture Industry Development Program, the Hillsborough County Extension Service, and the Environmental Protection Commission of Hillsborough County, provides farmers a safe and economical way to dispose of their unwanted pesticides, to avoid the potential public health and environmental risks associated with long term storage of these pesticides. The initiative also educates agricultural pesticide users on proper handling, storage, and management practices.
 
Funding for the collection is being provided through a grant from the Environmental Protection Commission of Hillsborough County Pollution Recovery Fund. This funding is limited and the collection will be closed when funding is exhausted.  This happened last year and we were forced to shut down earlier than expected due to the high amount of pesticides we received.
 
Pesticide manufacturers and distributors, homeowners, universities and government institutions, including state, county and local government pesticide users, are not eligible to participate.
 
For more information on the collection, contact Simon Bollin, Agriculture Industry Development Program Manager, Hillsborough County Economic Development Department, at (813) 276-2735 or bollins@hillsboroughcounty.org.