Darkroom from zero: Chems disposal

[nbagno]

The EPA sets the baseline, states need meet or exceed the EPA regulations. Here is a good starting point. https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/fi...s/photofin.pdf


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[xkaes]

http://www.subclub.org/darkroom/safety.htm

[Drew Wiley]

Fed EPA and State EPA's are only one aspect of regulation, mainly related to toxicity, carcinogens, etc. Air quality districts and the special requirements of municipalities or counties can add layers of their own. Here there are all kinds of regulations involving Coastal agencies and water runoff which are apart from the EPA. Sometimes there is such a competition between agencies for the priority of regulations that they are lawsuits between them. For example, twelve different agencies are involved in wetland restoration projects near the Bay Bridge. The sad irony is, once that restored marshland is projected to finally mature and function like something fully natural again, sea level rise will no doubt already have submerged it to the degree it is all lost anyway. I have a friend in charge of the project and have heard the whole story. It gives him an interesting outdoor job and pays his bills, but is frustrating in other ways.

[abruzzi]

although I do know about a super secret little trick military contractors used - it's called cat litter - absorbs paint like a charm and turns it into a solid mass

Interestingly, they were using cat litter to store and isolate radioactive waste at the WIPP in Carlsbad NM, and they changed brands which caused a tank rupture spilling radioactive waste with a quarter billion dollar cost to cleanup, fines and suspended operations. So, make sure you're using the correct cat litter.

[Drew Wiley]

Yep, ones containing hydroscopic clay (bentonite) swell. But they're also heavy to ship, and we shipped mountains of the correct stuff to military bases all over the Pacific. But with the military, they specify and you just fill the order, and hope they know what they are doing. Some branches are way better than others in that respect.

[Wayne]

My small town does not have the ability to dispose of these chemicals and I am not sure where else to look. Any help is appreciated.

Does your small town have a sewage treatment plant? Call them, not city hall. I've been able to bring 5 gallon buckets (of some waste) to the nearest town and dump it right in their treatment ponds. If you were in town on the sewer you could probably dump most of it down the drain, my method just eliminates the drain.

[bill2424]

I have a septic system so I worry about dumping my chemicals. In the past I use to give my fixer (used once) to the local college where they could still use it then dump it in the city sewer. They have since closed the darkrooms so I have to find an alternative
to that. What I now do is pour all my printing chemicals into a 5 gallon container. I have 3 containers which will get me through 3 printing sessions. Nothing gets dumped into my septic. I pour dektol, acetic acid, fix, selenium toner and perma wash all in the
container. I found that if I pour my dektol into the acetic acid it ends up with a PH of around 6 which is fairly neutral. When its all combined I'm not sure what I end up with. When I have 3 full containers full I take them to a motorhome dump station. From
there it gets picked up and taken for treatment. It's probably no worse then the waste dumped by motorhomes with their bleach and antifreeze and who knows what else.

[xkaes]

Much of what you use in the darkroom will not hurt the bacteria in a septic tank. For example, stop bath is mostly vinegar -- about 5% acetic acid. So a lot depends on how large your tank is, what chemicals you use, how dilute it is, and how much you use.

Perhaps there are web-sites (from septic companies?, universities, etc.) that have ways to check the health of the bacteria in a septic system. Just a guess.