Abandoned appliances can leak harmful substances into the ground, while also providing shelter for rats and mice. Children can accidentally lock themselves in refrigerators and suffocate. It’s easy to get rid of these items. You can find used appliance drop off locations throughout Kitsap County. 

Material that contains asbestos must be properly handled to prevent causing fatal illness. 

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FOR YOUR SAFETY 

Contact the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency for help with removing and disposing of asbestos. All asbestos-containing material must be disposed of at a special facility. For your safety, you must wet asbestos-containing material during removal to reduce your risk of breathing in its particles. You must seal asbestos waste in leak-tight containers, or put it in several layers of plastic bags with a combined thickness of six millimeters or more. You must label the bag or other container as containing asbestos. 

Many businesses in Washington generate some type of dangerous waste — waste that is harmful to human health and the environment.

Services are available to help your business reduce waste! If you own a small business, you may be eligible for our Pollution Prevention Assistance (PPA) program. The Department of Ecology also offers assistance for larger organizations.

When you reduce hazardous waste or eliminate it altogether, you can save money by reducing staff time spent on waste management and and by reducing expensive disposal costs. 

In addition to saving money, your business can also benefit by:

• Getting more customers. Many consumers looks for businesses that care about their environment.
  

• Saving taxpayers money. Government resources spent on hazardous waste can be redirected to businesses assistance and education. 
  

• Working in a safer community. Less hazardous products and wastes mean less potential exposure from waste handling and spills. 

  
  

Questions? We're here to help! Call us at 360-728-2235.

Construction and demolition waste is usually okay for salvage or for recycling. Some drop-box locations will accept certain types of construction and demolition waste for recycling.

Find disposal and recycling options for construction waste by searching “demolition debris” (for residential debris) or “construction debris” (for commercial debris) on Kitsap County's Waste Wizard. 

Note: Demolished or renovated structures may contain asbestos, lead, mercury, and other dangerous contaminants. It is recommended you hire a certified contractor or inspector to identify, remove, and dispose of hazardous demolition debris.

Composting keeps organic materials like food and yard waste out of landfills and gives the nutrients back to the environment.

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Curbside compost service for food and yard waste is available to Kitsap County residents. Contact the service provider in your area to sign up.

Commercial composters may need a solid waste handling permit. Commercial composting regulations can be complicated. Call us at 360-728-2235 for help understanding your specific composting requirements.

Additional resources:

• Find a yard waste drop off site: Kitsap County Waste Wizard

• Backyard Composting 101 | Kitsap County

• Curbside Composting in Kitsap County

• Composting - Washington State Department of Ecology

• Composting | US EPA

Indoor methamphetamine or fentanyl use may leave harmful residue. While there is no legal standard for fentanyl contamination, meth contamination above the legal limit results in an Unfit for Use Order and required cleanup oversight.

We offer assistance with regulations, approved cleanup contractors, and oversight to ensure compliance. For details, visit our Drug Contamination page or call us at 360-728-2235.

Key Regulations:

• WAC 246-205 – Decontamination of illegal drug sites

• RCW 64.44 – Contaminated properties

• KCBOH Ordinance 2005-7 – Drug site decontamination

E-Cycle Washington is a free program that makes it easy for Washington residents to recycle certain broken, obsolete, or worn-out electronics.

The Kitsap County Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility accepts hazardous waste from households and some businesses. For more information, call 360-337-5777. 

Leaky oil tanks can pollute your yard or seep into your basement, causing health issues and making it difficult to sell your home. 

For information about decommissioning home heating oil tanks, contact the State of Washington's Pollution Liability Insurance Agency (1-800-822-3905) or Kitsap County's Fire Marshall (360-337-5777).

Your household garbage must be stored in a leak-proof, rodent-proof container. It has to be collected often enough so it does not cause a nuisance, such as unsightly piles of garbage, odor, or the presence of rats and other animals. In Kitsap County, you can either self-haul to a Recycling and Garbage Facility or have your household garbage collected curbside. Some cities have mandatory curbside collection. 

Learn more about local garbage collection and recycling services.

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If you need curbside collection to dispose of waste that will not fit in your garbage can, such as a mattress, furniture, or a few boxes of household items, contact your regular waste hauler. The haulers who have exclusive contracts for residential curbside collection in our county are:

• City of Poulsbo | City of Poulsbo Public Works 360-779-4078 (Monday - Friday 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) 
  

• City of Bremerton | Waste Management 1-800-592-9995 (Monday - Friday, 7 a.m. - 5 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.) 
  

• Unincorporated Kitsap County | Waste Management 1-800-592-9995 (Monday – Friday, 7 a.m. – 5 p. m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.) 
  

• City of Port Orchard | Waste Management 1-800-592-9995 (Monday - Friday, 7 a.m. – 5 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.) 
  

• City of Bainbridge Island | Bainbridge Disposal 206-842-4882 (Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.) 
  

If you need clean-up services, such as demolition for a remodel, or cleaning out a garage, basement or attic, you may use special haulers called site restorations haulers.

A list of all certified waste haulers in Kitsap County is available online.

Before you toss something in the garbage, make sure it's safe! A lot of household items can be hazardous, such as:

• Garden supplies

• Paint

• Cleaning supplies

• Batteries

• Fluorescent light bulbs

• Unused medications or medical supplies

• Sharps

• And more!

Visit Kitsap County's Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility webpage to learn more about disposing these household items.

Questions? Call us at 360-728-2235.

Have old medications you no longer need? Safely dispose of them for free by taking your medication to drop-boxes located throughout Kitsap County. Learn more about safe medication disposal online.

Medical sharps (such as insulin syringes) are not accepted at these kiosks. You can place sharps in a puncture-proof plastic container and drop them off at Kitsap Public Health District for free disposal. Please label your container "sharps-biohazard" before dropping it off.

You can find other needle drop-off sites at Kitsap.gov. Sharps are not allowed in garbage or recycling containers in Kitsap County.

If you find a needle in a public place, do not pick it up. Call us at 360-728-2235 or report it online and we can send someone to get it.

It is illegal to burn trash anywhere in Kitsap County. This includes cardboard, paper and treated or painted wood.

When you burn certain items, the smoke can carry dangerous chemicals that can make you, your family, and community very sick. Vulnerable populations such as children, older adults, people who are pregnant, people with lung conditions, and outdoor workers are especially at risk.

Outdoor burning of vegetative waste is not recommended and is only allowed in certain areas with a permit provided by a local fire department. Contact your local fire department before you burn.

Learn more:

• Burn Ban Information | Kitsap County

• Outdoor Burning Alternatives | Puget Sound Clean Air

Pet waste (cat and dog poop) that remains on the ground pollutes our soil and water.

Kitsap County requires you to dispose of your pet's waste by placing pet waste - including litter - into a plastic bag (double-bagging is best), and put it in your garbage can.

Never flush it down the toilet. Never put pet waste in a storm sewer. 

Do not compost your pet's waste at home. Home composting does not destroy the bacteria in cat or dog poop and can make humans sick.

Always take along a plastic bag when walking your dog so you can clean up dog poop immediately. If you don't have a bag, look for a dog waste station.

Resource

• The Scoop on Dog Poop: Pet Waste Brochure

Rats and mice are considered hazards because they can carry diseases that can make people and their pets sick. Some of the more common diseases caused by rats and mice are bubonic plague, typhus, tularemia, and hantavirus. 

Rodents tend to live under wood piles, bushes, under buildings, and in garbage. They can also live in your house: in the walls, crawl spaces, under cupboards, in attics, and near your hot water heater and furnace. 

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The best way to keep these pests out of your home or yard is to take away their food, water, and shelter. 

Sources of food for rodents

• Garbage left uncovered or in garbage cans without rodent-proof lids

• Uneaten pet food in the house or outside

• Birdseed on the ground

• Fruits and berries that have fallen on the ground

• Dog poop in the yard

• Any human food out or spilled in the house

• Grains, such as cereal, oats, rice, and vegetables (especially potatoes and carrots) that are not stored in rodent-proof containers. 

How to help protect your home

• Seal all openings to your house that are one inch or larger, including the foundation of your house.

• Clean up piles of wood, yard waste, rocks, and anything that could give a rodent a home. 

• Remove or trim overgrown plants.

Use traps, not poison

Trapping rodents is safer than using poison. Children and household pets are at risk of eating poison by mistake. Poisoned rodents may be eaten by animals which can cause that animal to get very sick or die. It’s also possible a poisoned rodent may die in a place you can’t reach and will decay in your home, attracting more pests and causing a bad smell.

How to trap safely:

1. Use wooden rat traps. 

2. Bait the trap with apple, potato, raw bacon, or peanut butter on a cotton ball. 

3. Firmly attach the trap to the ground to keep it from being moved.

4. Place the trap near where you have seen rats or rat poop. 

   1. Make sure the trap is safely away from children and pets.

5. When a rodent has been trapped, wear gloves to remove the rodent. Put it in a sealed bag and put it in the garbage. Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water.

Stumped with a recycling problem or waste you don’t know what to do with? Find a list of where to recycle, dispose or donate items online.