Believe it or not, Maine is one of the best states in the country when it comes to recycling and proper disposal of trash. But that doesn't mean everyone understands or knows what exactly they're trying to recycle or toss in the trash.

Man taking out trash
Comstock Images
loading...

There's actually a handful of items that you can't simply dispose of in the trash or even at your local dump. Instead, Maine has designated certain waste facilities as the only places where household hazardous materials can be tossed out: the Environmental Depot in Lewiston and the Riverside Recycling Facility in Portland. Sorry to folks in those counties, cause these two facilities cover the entire state.

Garbage pile in trash dump or landfill. Pollution concept.
vchal
loading...

What exactly is a household hazardous material? According to the Environmental Protection Agency, hazardous household materials are anything that can catch fire, react, or explode under certain circumstances. Not only that, but anything that can corrode and potentially poison the soil is also considered hazardous.

So, have you been throwing away things that you aren't allowed to in Maine? Here are 10 things you need to dispose of differently.

10 Things You Aren't Allowed to Throw Away in Maine

From batteries to big screen TVs, here are 10 household things that you aren't allowed to throw away in the trash

Gallery Credit: Joey

17 Maine Restaurants Visited by Vacationing Celebrities

Many celebrities visit Maine and get the chance to eat at the numerous great restaurants the state has to offer. Have you had a chance to visit the local places below that these 18 celebrities have dined at?

READ ON: See the States Where People Live the Longest

Stacker used data from the 2020 County Health Rankings to rank every state's average life expectancy from lowest to highest. The 2020 County Health Rankings values were calculated using mortality counts from the 2016-2018 National Center for Health Statistics. The U.S. Census 2019 American Community Survey and America's Health Rankings Senior Report 2019 data were also used to provide demographics on the senior population of each state and the state's rank on senior health care, respectively.

Read on to learn the average life expectancy in each state.

Gallery Credit: Hannah Lang

More From WWMJ Ellsworth Maine