Prince William, Manassas, Manassas Park among localities participating in pesticide removal

Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) announced today the results of the 2015 Pesticide Disposal Program. Through this program, VDACS removed 62,261 pounds of unwanted pesticides.

Participants included agricultural producers, licensed pesticide dealers and pest control firms, golf course operators and homeowners. The program is available at no cost to eligible participants and is supported by pesticide fees collected by VDACS.

The 62,261 pounds (more than 31 tons) of unwanted pesticides were collected from the counties of Arlington, Caroline, Essex, Fairfax, Gloucester, King and Queen, King George, King William, Lancaster, Loudoun, Mathews, Middlesex, Northumberland, Prince William, Richmond, Spotsylvania, Stafford, Westmoreland, and the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Falls Church, Fredericksburg, Manassas and Manassas Park.

Since the program’s inception, VDACS has collected and disposed of 1,454,079 million pounds of pesticides.

In 2016, the program will take place in the counties of Albemarle, Augusta, Bath, Clarke, Culpeper, Fauquier, Fluvanna, Frederick, Greene, Highland, Louisa, Madison, Nelson, Orange, Page, Rappahannock, Rockbridge, Rockingham, Shenandoah, Warren and the cities of Buena Vista, Charlottesville, Harrisonburg, Lexington, Staunton, Waynesboro and Winchester.

Pesticides collected through the years have included DDT, Chlordane, Dursban, Paraquat, arsenic-containing pesticides, toxaphene, dieldren, silvex, 2,4,5-T and more. During the initial phases of the program, many of the pesticides collected had been banned and farmers or pest control firms had been holding onto the materials waiting for a safe collection and disposal method.

Eligible participants should contact their local Virginia Cooperative Extension Agent for details. See ext.vt.edu/offices/index.html for contact information.