COMMISSIONER SID MILLER ANNOUNCES STRONG START TO PESTICIDE COLLECTION EVENTS IN 2025 (3/10/2025)

Last week’s Dawson County collection event collected 179,619 lbs. of unwanted pesticides

AUSTIN – Today, Commissioner Sid Miller proudly announced that the Dawson County pesticide waste removal event, hosted by the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) and the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service in Lamesa, Texas, collected an estimated 179,619 pounds of unwanted pesticides. These free public events provide agricultural producers across the state with a safe and convenient way to dispose of unwanted pesticides and recycle pesticide containers.

“The estimated total from this event is more than half of what we collected across three events last year,” Commissioner Miller said. “I want to commend my staff for their efforts in promoting and executing these collection opportunities for our farmers and ranchers. These events offer a simple, safe, and efficient way for producers to dispose of hazardous products properly. What an outstanding start to the year.”

Accepted items included outdated, discontinued, or unwanted agricultural pesticides, poisons, insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, rodenticides, nematicides, growth regulators, and treated seeds. Items not accepted included dioxins (such as 2,4-5T, Silvex, and TCDD), fertilizers, fumigant canisters, household hazardous waste, methyl bromide cylinders, motor oil, paint, pesticide rinsate, phostoxin, propane or butane cylinders, radioactive substances, and tires.

“Being good stewards of the land is essential to preserving not only agricultural production but also the long-term prosperity of the Lone Star State,” Commissioner Miller said. “The success of this event would not have been possible without the participation of producers committed to responsibly disposing of these chemicals and poisons. For that, I tip my hat and say thank you.”

As the state’s lead agency for regulating pesticide use and application, TDA oversees pesticide applicator licensing and training, worker protection, pesticide registration, and efforts to minimize unnecessary agricultural impacts.

For more information on waste disposal, contact the Texas Department of Agriculture at 512-463-7622.