Hazardous materials that are not safe to be disposed of in a landfill should be disposed of properly, and next month the City of Picayune will hold a hazardous waste collection day to allow residents to safely dispose of those items.

Hazardous waste items can be dropped off at 101 Whitthauer Street in Picayune on Oct. 19, from 8 a.m. to noon, or until the grant money runs out.

Residents can bring the following hazardous materials for proper disposal; fluorescent bulbs, batteries, electronics, any item containing mercury, aerosols, corrosive materials, flammable liquids, oil based paints, oxidizers, poison and tires. A number of items won’t be accepted. Those include infectious waste such as blood, feces and urine. Other items that will not be accepted include needles, Drug Enforcement Agency regulated materials and medication, radioactive waste, explosives including fireworks, ammunition, any waste containing PCB and propane tanks.

Funding for the disposal of these materials is provided by the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, which provided $25,000 to the city to hold the event, according to a press release from the agency. The agency also awarded $23,350 to Pearl River County to hold a similar event. Pearl River County Fire Marshal Albert Lee said he plans to hold the county cleanup day in late October or early November, but a date has not been set at press time.

City of Picayune Grant Administrator Christy Goss said a city wide cleanup day will be organized in conjunction with the city’s hazardous waste cleanup day. It will take place the same day from 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Participants are asked to gather at Crosby Commons at 8 a.m. and then meet back at the park at 11:30 for a wrap up. Participants will be tasked with collecting trash along the roads in the city during that event.