The disposal of household hazardous waste and materials as municipal solid waste (MSW) remains a
vexing problem for solid waste managers and policymakers. A major underlying factor is the inconvenience
of special collection programs compared to general disposal. A properly designed, mandatory
retail take-back program can significantly improve user convenience compared to centralized or periodic,
voluntary special collection programs. San Luis Obispo County, California, population 271,960, was
the first county in the US to establish a mandatory retail take-back program for specific household
hazardous waste and materials (HHWM): fluorescent lamps, household batteries, medical sharps, and
latex paint. This program uses retail locations as collection points for subsequent transport by the county
to its transfer facility. This shared responsibility program has been highly effective at diverting HHWM
from disposal as MSW. Between April 2009 and October 2012 the estimated collection/diversion rates
increased dramatically from near zero percent to approximately 36.44% for fluorescent lamps, 21.4% for
household batteries, 28.43% for latex paint, and 72.65% for used medical sharps. For household batteries
and fluorescent lamps, the convenience of the collection container and the type of store were statistically
significant predictors of the number of batteries and lamps collected