MDA collects 18 tons pesticide containers for recycling this year

The Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA) has recycled 743,000 plastic pesticide containers – 42,242 of them this year – through its pesticide container recycling programs for farmers, golf courses, government agencies and commercial applicators. This program, in its 20th year of operation, helps prevent pesticide residues from entering the soil and local waterways and saves valuable landfill space. This recycling service is free and paid for with money collected from licensing and certification fees and pesticide product registration fees.

"This beneficial pesticide recycling program helps to protect the Chesapeake Bay by removing potential contaminants from the environment through proper disposal and provides sources of recycled materials for vendors,” said Agriculture Secretary Buddy Hance. “We are very pleased with the response of farmers, commercial pesticide applicators and other pesticide users.”

Each year since 1993, MDA has operated an empty pesticide plastic container inspection and collection program open to the public in at least six locations from June through September. In addition, 21 pesticide dealer sites participate in the program. The collected containers are chipped, processed and remanufactured into new pesticide containers by a contractor hired by the pesticide manufacturing industry.

This year, 42,242 containers, weighing more than 18 tons, were collected from 137 participants. During the program’s 20 years, MDA has collected and recycled more than 743,000 empty pesticide containers, weighing 318 tons. This year the program operated in 13 counties: Baltimore,Caroline, Carroll, Frederick, Harford, Howard, Kent, Prince George’s, Queen Anne’s County, Somerset, Talbot, Washington and Wicomico. During the program’s 20 years, MDA has collected and recycled more than 318 tons of empty pesticide containers.

MDA regulates the use of pesticides and provides educational programs for private (farmer), public agency and commercial pesticide applicators that operate in Maryland to ensure that pesticide are used properly and that adverse effects from their use are avoided or minimized.