Drop it off
Where Columbus residents can take paint:
- Golden Triangle Regional Landfill Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day9778 Old West Point Road, Starkville, MS 39759
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All drop-off locations in and near Columbus1
Start with these
Golden Triangle Regional Landfill Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day
9778 Old West Point Road, Starkville, MS 39759
- Accepts
- The landfill's FAQ lists pesticides, paints and stains, rodent poison, electronic waste, lighter fluids, batteries, aerosols, household cleaners, automobile fluids, oil filters, waste tires, chlorine and herbicides. The 2017 listing and WCBI's 2023 list also named wood finish. Neither source separates latex from oil-based paint.
- Who can use it
- Households only. The 2017 listing said items from business or industry, including Mississippi State, would not be accepted. In 2002 the Reflector said the day served Clay, Lowndes, Oktibbeha, Choctaw, Noxubee and Webster counties. The landfill's site lists trash contacts for Columbus, Starkville, West Point, Macon, Brooksville, Eupora and those counties.
- Hours
- A once-a-year spring event, not a year-round drop-off. The landfill's own site says it holds the day each spring for area residents but lists no date. The newest dated notice we found is WCBI's April 26, 2024 story, which said that Saturday's day ran 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the landfill on Old West Point Road. WCBI also covered a day in late April 2023 (9 a.m. to 2 p.m.), and Mississippi State listed one on April 29, 2017 (9 a.m. to 2 p.m.). We found no 2025 or 2026 notice. The landfill office is open Monday to Friday, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Load limits
- The 2017 and 2023 notices said explosives, infectious waste, munitions, radioactive waste, gas cylinders (butane, propane, Freon) and Freon devices such as air conditioners and refrigerators were not taken. No gallon or container limit has been published.
- Fees
- No fee is listed for the collection day. In 2020 Mississippi DEQ granted the Golden Triangle Authority $52,500 for a household hazardous waste collection program. On ordinary days the landfill charges a $15 minimum disposal fee and $32 a ton for commercial and C&D customers, and its site says it takes non-hazardous solid waste, construction and demolition debris, and approved industrial and special waste.
The Dispatch places the landfill in Oktibbeha County, just south of West Point; WCBI's 2024 story placed it in Clay County. From Columbus, the landfill's directions say to take US-82 West, exit at US-45 Alt North, drive about 2.8 miles, then turn left onto Old West Point Road (also called Tibbee Road); the entrance is 3/4 mile on the left. Call 662-324-7566 or email gtrswma@gmail.com for the next date. Mississippi has no PaintCare program.
Golden Triangle Regional Landfill (Golden Triangle Regional Solid Waste Management Authority): home page and FAQ ↗WCBI: Golden Triangle Landfill hosts hazardous waste disposal day (April 26, 2024) ↗WCBI: Landfill limits: What you should do with hazardous waste (April 2023) ↗WCBI: Hundreds of homes in the Golden Triangle are free of hazardous waste (April 2023) ↗Mississippi State University events archive: Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day (April 29, 2017) ↗The Reflector: Household hazardous waste to be collected Saturday in Columbus (Oct. 25, 2002) ↗The Dispatch: Ask the Dispatch: What should Columbus do about the landfill? (Nov. 26, 2024) ↗Mississippi DEQ: Solid waste assistance grant to the Golden Triangle Authority for household hazardous waste collection ↗
Which option fits your Columbus cleanout?4
A few cans of leftover interior latex
Don't set them in your GTWS cart; paint is on its do-not-pick-up list. Keep the lids on and hold the cans for the Golden Triangle spring collection day, which takes paints and stains. If you can't wait, call Golden Triangle Maintenance at 662-251-4744 and ask whether its hazardous pickup takes latex paint and what it costs.
City of Columbus, Mississippi: Disposal Information for City of Columbus Residents (revised Sept. 27, 2023, PDF) ↗Golden Triangle Regional Landfill (Golden Triangle Regional Solid Waste Management Authority): home page and FAQ ↗City of Columbus, Mississippi: Public Works (rubbish landfill rules, hazardous pickup number) ↗
Old oil-based paint, stain and wood finish from a shed
These go to the collection day too. The landfill's list names paints and stains, and the 2017 list named wood finish. Mississippi DEQ suggests soaking up oil-based paint in kitty litter or sawdust only when no collection is available, and Columbus's sheet says to hold paint for the day, so keep the cans sealed until then.
Golden Triangle Regional Landfill (Golden Triangle Regional Solid Waste Management Authority): home page and FAQ ↗Mississippi State University events archive: Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day (April 29, 2017) ↗Mississippi DEQ: Household Hazardous Waste (paint options) ↗City of Columbus, Mississippi: Disposal Information for City of Columbus Residents (revised Sept. 27, 2023, PDF) ↗
Cleaning out a rental: paint, tires and an old TV
The city's sheet lists paint and tires as hazardous items to hold for the collection day, but the same sheet also lets residents leave up to 30 tires a month at the city's open-top dumpster. That dumpster at 1600 12th Avenue South (weekdays 8 to 5, free to city residents with a driver's license) takes furniture, mattresses, carpet and appliances. Electronics need a $5 fee paid there first, then go to Waste Pro at 701 6th Street South. Keep the paint separate.
A painting or roofing contractor with job waste
The collection day takes only household items; business waste is turned away. The rubbish landfill takes contractor construction waste but not paint, liquids or chemical containers, and The Dispatch reported on March 12, 2026 that it may close to the public for good. The regional landfill says it accepts approved industrial and special waste and that special waste rates vary, so call 662-324-7566 and ask whether paint qualifies.
Mississippi State University events archive: Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day (April 29, 2017) ↗City of Columbus, Mississippi: Public Works (rubbish landfill rules, hazardous pickup number) ↗The Dispatch: City landfill may close to public permanently (March 12, 2026) ↗Golden Triangle Regional Landfill (Golden Triangle Regional Solid Waste Management Authority): home page and FAQ ↗
Columbus rules and tips5
THE LOCAL ANSWER
Keep your paint sealed at home and take it to the Golden Triangle Regional Landfill's spring Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day at 9778 Old West Point Road, Starkville, Mississippi; call 662-324-7566 for the next date. The landfill lists paints and stains on its accepted list. Don't put paint in your Golden Triangle Waste Services cart or take it to the Columbus rubbish landfill. The city's Public Works page also lists 662-251-4744 for hazardous material pickup.
Columbus, Mississippi, in Lowndes County, has no year-round paint drop-off. The city's disposal sheet calls paint hazardous waste and says to hold it until "Hazardous Material Day." The sheet doesn't name a date or place. The only household hazardous waste day we found for the area is the Golden Triangle Regional Solid Waste Management Authority's spring collection at its landfill on Old West Point Road, which The Dispatch (Nov. 26, 2024) places in Oktibbeha County just south of West Point. The city's garbage hauler won't pick up paint, and the city's rubbish landfill on Armstrong Road won't take paint or paint buckets.
The city says to hold paint for the collection day
Columbus's disposal sheet (revised Sept. 27, 2023) lists paints, chemicals, batteries and tires as hazardous waste. It says they shouldn't go out with household trash or to a landfill and should be held until Hazardous Material Day. In 2002 the manager of the Columbus Lowndes Environmental and Recycle Office told people to store such products in a garage or shed away from children until the day.
Paint is on the hauler's do-not-pick-up list
Golden Triangle Waste Services (GTWS) collects city garbage, billed on your Columbus Light and Water bill. Its list of items it won't pick up includes paint, poisons, pesticides, tires, bulk liquids and anything classified as hazardous under federal rules. Call GTWS at 662-327-6660 with cart questions. Lowndes County's trash line on the landfill's site is the same number.
The Armstrong Road landfill won't take paint
The city's Class I rubbish landfill lists "Paint/Paint Buckets," liquids, aerosol cans, chemical containers and hazardous material of any kind as not acceptable. The Dispatch reported on March 12, 2026 that it had been closed to the public for maintenance and that the council would decide the following week whether to keep it closed to the public for good. We found no later report of that decision. The Public Works page still lists public hours, so call 662-329-5115 before hauling anything there.
A hazardous pickup number is listed
Right under the landfill rules, the Public Works page says: for hazardous material pickup, call Golden Triangle Maintenance at 662-251-4744. The page doesn't say what it costs, whether it takes paint, or who can use it. Ask before setting anything out. For other Public Works questions, call 662-328-4481.
Where the collection day has been
Recent days have been at the regional landfill, run on a Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. (2017, 2023 and 2024 notices). In 2002 the day was held in Columbus at the city maintenance facility, 2502 Bell Avenue, and a mayor quoted by the Reflector said it moved to a different place each year. WCBI said more than 400 cars came through in 2023, and the authority's director said some of the paint would be blended and used for fuel.
Free pickup programs and other options
Mississippi has no PaintCare program, so no stores take paint back through PaintCare. Mississippi DEQ suggests using paint up or giving it to a theater group, school or Habitat for Humanity. The city's sheet says Columbus-Lowndes Habitat for Humanity (662-329-2501) will pick up building materials; ask whether that includes paint. The city's free recycling drop-offs (Cook Elementary, 2217 7th Street North, and the Hitching Lot on Main Street) take cardboard, plastics and metals, not paint. Unlike Tupelo, where city residents can drop paint at Public Works on weekdays, Columbus has no weekday site. PaintCare's locator lists only two Mississippi sites, both non-program listings that serve their own areas: Jackson's Environmental Service Center (households and very small businesses in Hinds, Madison and Rankin counties) and Harrison County's site in Gulfport (Harrison County households only).
Getting your paint ready
Keep paint in its original, labeled can with the lid on tight. Write down what you have before calling 662-324-7566 about the next date. At the 2024 day, the contractor tested unlabeled containers to sort acids and bases, so labels help. Leave explosives, ammunition, medical waste, propane and Freon appliances at home. Bring only household paint; business loads are turned away.
Full preparation checklist →Columbus questions5
Where can I get rid of paint in Columbus, Mississippi?
At the Golden Triangle Regional Landfill's spring Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day, 9778 Old West Point Road. The landfill lists paints and stains among the items it takes that day. Call 662-324-7566 for the date. Columbus has no year-round paint drop-off.
When is the next hazardous waste day?
No date was posted when we checked. The landfill says it's held each spring. The newest notice we found was WCBI's April 26, 2024 story for that Saturday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Can I put dried latex paint in my garbage cart?
The city's hauler, GTWS, lists paint among items it won't pick up, and the city's sheet says to hold paint for Hazardous Material Day. Mississippi DEQ's dry-it-out tip is only for when no collection is available. Call GTWS at 662-327-6660 before trying it.
Is it free?
No fee is listed for the collection day. The Reflector quoted the authority in 2002 calling it free to the public. In 2020 Mississippi DEQ granted the authority $52,500 for its household hazardous waste program.
I live in Caledonia or elsewhere in Lowndes County. Can I go?
In 2002 the Reflector said the day served Lowndes, Clay, Oktibbeha, Choctaw, Noxubee and Webster counties, and the landfill's site lists Lowndes County among the places it serves. The landfill now just says "area residents." Only household items are taken. Call 662-324-7566 to confirm.
Sources and how we checked16
Checked October 17, 2026: the City of Columbus Public Works page, its Waste Disposal page and disposal sheet (revised Sept. 27, 2023), the Golden Triangle Regional Landfill site (read in the in-app browser because curl was blocked), WCBI stories from April 2023 and April 26, 2024, Mississippi State's 2017 event listing, the Reflector's 2002 story, The Dispatch's Nov. 2024 and March 12, 2026 landfill stories, Mississippi DEQ's household hazardous waste page, its Lowndes County recycling directory and its grant release to the Golden Triangle Authority, and PaintCare's locator data (no Columbus-area listing; Mississippi has no program). A Starkville tourism event listing that search results tied to a 2026 date returned a 404, so we didn't use it. Unresolved: the 2026 and 2027 collection dates; whether the 662-251-4744 hazardous pickup takes paint and what it costs; whether the Armstrong Road landfill is now closed to the public for good; whether Columbus-Lowndes Habitat takes paint. We made no phone calls.
Checked October 17, 2026 against these sources, not by phone. How we research.
City of Columbus, Mississippi: Disposal Information for City of Columbus Residents (revised Sept. 27, 2023, PDF) ↗City of Columbus, Mississippi: Public Works (rubbish landfill rules, hazardous pickup number) ↗City of Columbus, Mississippi: Waste Disposal page ↗Golden Triangle Regional Landfill (Golden Triangle Regional Solid Waste Management Authority): home page and FAQ ↗WCBI: Golden Triangle Landfill hosts hazardous waste disposal day (April 26, 2024) ↗WCBI: Landfill limits: What you should do with hazardous waste (April 2023) ↗WCBI: Hundreds of homes in the Golden Triangle are free of hazardous waste (April 2023) ↗Mississippi State University events archive: Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day (April 29, 2017) ↗The Reflector: Household hazardous waste to be collected Saturday in Columbus (Oct. 25, 2002) ↗The Dispatch: City landfill may close to public permanently (March 12, 2026) ↗The Dispatch: Ask the Dispatch: What should Columbus do about the landfill? (Nov. 26, 2024) ↗Mississippi DEQ: Solid waste assistance grant to the Golden Triangle Authority for household hazardous waste collection ↗Mississippi DEQ: Recycling directory, Lowndes County ↗Mississippi DEQ: Household Hazardous Waste (paint options) ↗PaintCare drop-off site locator ↗PaintCare program states ↗
