Hazardous household waste

The hazardous household waste collection is operated by the City of London on behalf of London Borough of Islington. 

What we collect

The hazardous household waste collection is operated by the City of London on behalf of London Borough of Islington. The service collects:

• chemical waste
• asbestos
• paint.

Before booking, find out how to present your hazardous waste for collection and how much they can take on the City of London website.

What we do not collect

• Explosives.
• Nerve gas.
• Polychlorinated biphenyl compounds (PCBs).
• Pressurised vessels (including gas cylinders and cartridges).
• Radioactive waste, including low level radioactive materials (such as uranyl acetate/nitrate).
• Clinical waste including biological specimens.
• Flammable film stock (cellulose acetate).

How much we collect

Chemicals and paint

Per household:

• 50 litres in total
• Containers up to 25kg each or no more than 25 litres
• Three collections per year.
• One collection in a month.

Collections are free.

Asbestos

• 15 square metres or seven bags for free - we will charge you for more than this
• one asbestos collection per year.

How to book

Visit the City of London hazardous waste webpage to log a collection or call 020 7332 3433 between 8am and 5pm.

Asbestos collection point at the Hornsey Street Reuse and Recycling Centre

You can leave cement-bonded asbestos at the Hornsey Street Reuse and Recycling Centre (RRC) for disposal in deep landfill. You must book first to drop off asbestos.

Call 020 8884 5645 to make an appointment.

What you should do first

You should:

• tell us how much asbestos you need to leave at the RRC so we know we have enough space in our asbestos container
• double wrap asbestodsin thick polythene sheeting, sealed with strong tape
• seal smaller pieces in thick plastic sacks - do not break any material into pieces to fit into a bag or use a saw to cut sheets as this will create dangerous asbestos dust.

Read how to find the RRC and more information about it.