When it comes to clean up projects, most people who know me figure out pretty quickly that I'm not a saver. My cleaning philosophy is, basically, if I don't need it within the next fifteen minutes, throw it out.

Now this method is great for getting a room or a closet cleaned out in short order, but I never realized that by throwing out certain things, like the computer monitor I just chucked, I was actually breaking the law. So, as a public service to you, and so that you don't wind up doing time, here's a list of 20 items that are illegal to throw out in Greater Danbury:

According to the State of Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the things you cannot just throw away in the garbage are as follows:

  1. Electronics, including computers, televisions, computer monitors and key boards
  2. Paint
  3. Mercury Thermostats
  4. Mattresses
  5. Glass & Metal Food & Beverage Containers
  6. Plastic Containers
  7. Corrugated Cardboard
  8. Box board
  9. Newspaper
  10. Magazines
  11. White & Colored Office Paper
  12. Scrap Metal
  13. Appliances
  14. Rechargeable Batteries
  15. Waste Oil
  16. Leaves (must be composted)
  17. Lead Acid Battery or Motor Vehicle Batteries
  18. Grass Clippings
  19. Beverage Containers
  20. Telephone Books

Now many of the items on the list above are items that can be be recycled, however, some items are banned from entering the waste stream altogether and require the manufacturers of certain items to provide collection systems for their products.

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