Cooking Oil
Cooking oil can block plumbing and piping, which allows for waste water/sewage backup into homes and businesses (ew). People assume that flushing used oil down the drain with hot water will work, but drains do not have proper grease management systems, and blockages will persist.
We'd love to hear from anyone in the Whanganui region who wants waste cooking oil to refine for biofuel. Please use the "Have a Question, Tip, Something to Add?" button to email us.
Reduce the need for new cooking oil, by safely filtering it for reuse. Epicurious has a great article on reusing cooking oil safely.
Vegetable oils, such as canola or olive oil, are compostable in small quantities. Oil can also be used to kill weeds; just pour into spray bottle and apply where needed.
A good way to deal with used oil is to freeze it - whether you plan on reusing it in the near future or throwing it out. Once the oil cools, pour the oil into a tightly sealable container and place it in the freezer.
Seed cakes for birds can be made by mixing small amounts of used lard/fat with the seeds.
Wikihow has a few alternative ideas for reusing cooking oil too such as in soap.
Business: contact a certified hazardous waste contractor to clean grease traps and remove waste cooking oil. Cookright and FatMan collect used oil for upcycling into biodiesel.
Home: if you have a small amount of cooking oil, contact a local restaurant and ask if they would take it to recycle with their oil.
If you are unable to reuse or recycle cooking oil, the next best practical option is to solidify the oil by mixing it with sawdust, cat litter, shredded paper, flour until the consistency is thick enough to easily throw away.
If you have to throw your oil out, do it the right way. Once the oil cools, pour it into a milk carton or non-recyclable container, making sure the container is unbreakable and is sealed tightly to prevent spills and leakages. Fat Trapper bags can be purchased to tidily collect waste oil for disposal.
If you do not have access to reuse or recycling options, register to dispose of cooking oil on an hazardous waste collection day.