For more technical information, try visiting the RotWeb Household toxics Individuals tend to be very sloppy when it comes to handling toxic materials in the home. Individuals often handle toxic chemicals in ways businesses would be fined for. The heaviest application of agricultural chemicals in the USA comes not from agribusiness, but rather from home gardeners. Indoor air pollution from household products often far exceeds allowable federal outdoor quality rules. Items such as poisons, paints, oil, solvents, automotive fluids, cleaners, herbicides and many others must not be dumped into the regular garbage.
Water seeps through landfills and toxics end up in the water table.
In areas that burn garbage, your toxics may end up in the air you breathe. The best thing to do is use what you buy, buy only what you need. Manufacturers have been known to make misleading, trivial, irrelevant and false statements on packaging. The more specific a claim, the easier it is verify. Two prominent independent certification laboratories exist to verify environmental claims.