Attention All Imaging Departments: We Can All Do Our Part on America Recycle Day

It’s important that we do our part and recycle all those old lead x-ray aprons that may be laying around. As we know, lead is very harmful to the environment and must be disposed of properly. It’s important to note that some states may have different regulations and requirements than others, so check your local disposal regulations. 

A few ways for lead apron disposal:

1. Contact a recycling company. You can contact a local recycling (or “re-claimer”) scrap metal company and see if they recycle lead products.
2. Contact your hazardous waste carrier or handling company. Sometimes a local hazardous waste carrier or handling company will come to you and pick-up the lead apron. It’s important to follow your state and local regulations and check to confirm the handling company is licensed.
3. Bring your aprons to a local landfill. Many local landfills will accept lead aprons however, sometimes landfills won’t accept lead aprons with large cracks or damage due to high toxicity levels.

There may be more ways to dispose of lead aprons but these are the most common and appropriate disposal methods. It’s important to know that you cannot throw away lead aprons in the regular trash!