Please note that the S.T.O.P (Stop Throwing Out Pollutants) events are scheduled several times per year. S.T.O.P. Events are designed to safely accept Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) from residents.

Please read carefully the list of items (below) can be dropped off at S.T.O.P events and how you should package items prior to arriving at the events.

2024 S.T.O.P. 
(Stop Throwing Out Pollutants)

North Hempstead Beach Park North Lot
Saturday, March 9, 2024
9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Westbury High School
Saturday, June 29, 2024
9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

North Hempstead Beach Park North Lot
Saturday, September 28, 2024
9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

North Hempstead Beach Park North Lot
Sunday, October 13, 2024
9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Please note that the S.T.O.P (Stop Throwing Out Pollutants) events are scheduled several times per year. The calendar for each year's events is posted on the town's website as soon as the locations and dates have been finalized with the vendors servicing the events. S.T.O.P. Events are designed to safely accept Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) from residents.

Please read carefully the S.T.O.P Event section in the brochure mailed to all Town of North Hempstead Residents, which includes information as to what items can be dropped off at S.T.O.P events and how you should package items prior to arriving at the events.

The S.T.O.P. (Stop Throwing Out Pollutants) program offers residents of North Hempstead the opportunity to dispose of their household hazardous waste in an environmentally friendly manner. Many people do not realize that ordinary household products, such as aerosols and cleaners, can be corrosive, explosive, or toxic if mixed indiscriminately with regular household garbage. Please take an extra moment to check labels for warnings, and please take advantage of the S.T.O.P. dates to ensure safe disposal. 

Explosives, fireworks, ammunition, radioactive materials, and commercial or industrial wastes are not accepted. This program is only open to Town Of North Hempstead residents and the Town will only accept residential waste. No waste will be accepted from any resident’s business or home office 

What Pollutants Are Accepted:

• Electronic Waste (See below list of accepted e-waste) 
• ONLY rechargeable, lithium, button and car batteries
• Compact fluorescent bulbs and tubes
• Air conditioning refrigerants
• Ammonia and solid bowl cleaner
• Anti-freeze
• Bug and rodent killers including 2, 4-D (Especially pesticides which have been banned or restricted for use)
• Bleach and disinfectants
• Chemistry kits
• Drain cleaners and degreasers
• Fertilizers and herbicides
• Mercury products
• Non-latex paints
• Paint thinners and brush cleaner
• Photography chemicals
• Some polishes and wood preservers
• Swimming pool chemicals
• Spot removers and other solvents
• Unused oven cleaners
• Unused flammable liquids (fire starter)
Weed killers

The Town of North Hempstead will NO LONGER be collecting pharmaceuticals at S.T.O.P. dates. To dispose of pharmaceuticals, please bring them to your local police precinct or attend a Town "Shed the Meds" Event. 

For more information on proper disposal of medications click here.

Important Message About Attendance and Participation at a Town of North Hempstead Sponsored S.T.O.P. Event

To the extent feasible all participants should place all of the items they are dropping-off in their vehicle’s trunk or a back area accessible by a lift gate. All items need to be packaged safely and responsibly. Any containers that could possibly leak should be placed in a plastic bag, preferably clear, sealed to prevent leakage, and then placed in a cardboard box to prevent the items from moving around while the vehicle is on its way to the S.T.O.P. event.

Proper participation upon arrival at the event:

S.T.O.P. events are quite popular and therefore there is usually a good turnout. Town of North Hempstead employees along with our various partners for the day will make every effort to process participants as quickly as possible. To do so your cooperation is necessary. For your safety and that of your fellow participants, all drivers must follow the directions of the staff managing the event. If you do so, participation should be as simple as, you pull-in, wait in line until you have reached the drop-off area, unlock your trunk or lift gate remotely – while remaining in your vehicle -- and the event staff will safely remove your items and direct you safely, either onto the next drop-off point or the event exit.

Important information about the disposal of paint
Latex Paint:
Many Town of North Hempstead residents are under the impression that water-based paints and latex paints are considered hazardous and must be disposed of at a S.T.O.P. drop-off event. This is INCORRECT. You can properly dispose of Latex and water-based paints as follows: Remove the lid from the paint can in an area where the can will remain undisturbed for at least 24-72 hours. Once the paint contents have dried out completely, the paint content will have shrunk in diameter sufficiently to be dumped from the can. The dried paint contents can be disposed of with your regular trash in a sealed plastic garbage bag. The now empty metal (tin) or plastic container can be placed in your recycling container for metal, glass and plastic items. Note: Some residual dried paint on the container is fine and will not interfere with the container’s recyclability. Latex and water-based paints will not be accepted at a S.T.O.P. drop-off event.

Oil Based Paints:
Oil based paints on the other hand, are considered hazardous, and will be accepted at any S.T.O.P. drop-off event day. Please package oil based paint properly when bringing it to a S.T.O.P. event. If the cans are not sealed properly please bag them in plastic bags to prevent leakage both in your vehicle during transport and after drop-off. Place oil-based paint items in a cardboard box and place the box in your truck or wagon back.

The Shredding of Confidential Documents and Papers at S.T.O.P. Events
The shredding services provided at Town of North Hempstead sponsored S.T.O.P. events are solely for residents. No shredding will be accepted from any resident’s business or home office. Participants are limited to a maximum of 6 boxes or bags per vehicle, per event, due to time and capacity constraints.
The Town of North Hempstead is proud to make available to all town residents at our S.T.O.P. events the safe destruction of documents and papers while you wait and watch at no additional cost. Your documents are shredded and put into containers and sent for recycling.

Residents are invited to bring any paper documents and files to all S.T.O.P. events from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.  Please remove paper clips, metal binders and file folders with metal inserts before dropping-off your papers.
Clothing and Gently-Used Household Items Residents Can Drop-Off at S.T.O.P. Events
The Town of North Hempstead is proud to make available to all Town residents at our S.T.O.P events the service, through the Big Brothers/Big Sisters charitable organization, of donating clothing and gently-used household items.

Electronic Equipment Covered by the Law*:
Note: Only the items listed below will be accepted at Town of North Hempstead drop-off locations for electronics. Other electrical devices not covered by the NYS Law, must be placed out for regular garbage collection.

Computers (including laptops, desktops, tablets and e-readers)
Televisions
Cathode ray tubes
Computer peripherals (including any cable, cord, or wiring accompanying the computer peripheral.)
o Monitors
o Electronic keyboards
o Electronic mice or similar pointing devices
o Facsimile machines, document scanners, and printers (only those intended for use with a computer and weighing less than 100 lbs.)

Small electronic equipment (including any cable, cord, or wiring accompanying the small electronic equipment.)
o VCRs
o Digital video recorders (DVRs)
o Portable digital music players
o DVD players (including projectors with DVD player capabilities intended for home-use)
o Digital converter boxes
o Cable or satellite receivers (including digital media receivers)
o Electronic or video game consoles (including both handheld devices and those intended for use with a video display device)
Small scale servers

Covered electronic equipment does not include: any motor vehicle or any part thereof; camera or video camera; portable or stationary radio; household appliances such as clothes washers, clothes dryers, refrigerators, freezers, microwave ovens, ovens, ranges or dishwashers; equipment that is functionally or physically part of a larger piece of equipment intended for use in an industrial, research and development or commercial setting; security or anti-terrorism equipment; monitoring and control instrument or system; thermostat; hand-held transceiver; telephone of any type; portable digital assistant or similar device; calculator; global positioning system (GPS) receiver or similar navigation device; a server other than a small-scale server; a cash register or retail self-checkout system; a stand-alone storage product intended for use in industrial, research and development or commercial settings; commercial medical equipment that contains within it a cathode ray tube, a flat panel display or similar video display device, and is not separate from the larger piece of equipment; or other medical devices as that term is defined under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.

* If you are unsure if your electronic device is covered by this law, please contact NYSDEC at (518) 402-8706 or email ewaste@dec.ny.gov.

For more information, please call 311 if within the Town or (516) 869-6311, if outside the Town.