Everything you need to get rid of leftover paint responsibly in Meridian.
311 27th Avenue South, Meridian, MS 39301
Contacts in the notices: 601-485-1970 or 601-485-1990 (2019 and 2023 stories). The city's Public Works page lists 601-485-1920 at 311 27th Avenue. Waste Pro, the city's trash hauler (601-483-9777), lists paint as unacceptable in your cart. Mississippi has no PaintCare program.
210 Windmill Drive, Meridian, MS 39305
Phone numbers for Solid Waste Enforcement Officer Daniel Mabry differ: the county's August 2026 release about the Sept. 19 Amnesty Day gives 601-816-9723, while the county's Solid Waste Enforcement page lists a cell of 601-816-7923 (also in the 2023 Meridian Star story) and an office line of 601-482-9797. The county's five SAT barns, including the one at this address, don't take hazardous materials on normal days. Mississippi has no PaintCare program.
Don't put them in the Waste Pro cart; paint is on its unacceptable list. Call Meridian Public Works at 601-485-1920 to ask about the next city collection day. The city's last posted day, Oct. 19, 2024, took paint at the Public Works Complex and North Hills Shopping Center.
Both were on the county's 2026 Amnesty Day list, which is free for residents outside the Meridian city limits. Hold them until the next posted date at 210 Windmill Drive. Don't leave them at a SAT barn; the barns refuse hazardous materials.
Waste Pro picks up bulk items and appliances weekly at the curb, but appliances with Freon must be tagged first. Paint isn't accepted at the curb. Ask Public Works (601-485-1920) about the next city hazardous waste day for the paint.
Contractor waste isn't collected by Waste Pro or taken at the county SAT barns. The city and county days were described for residents, and neither notice mentions businesses. Waste Pro rents open-top containers for construction debris (601-483-9777); ask whether paint is allowed, since its residential rules exclude it.
If you live inside Meridian city limits, call Meridian Public Works at 601-485-1920 to ask when the next city Household Hazardous Waste Day is; Waste Pro lists paint as unacceptable in your cart. If you live in Lauderdale County outside the city, use the county's free Amnesty Day at 210 Windmill Drive; 2026's were April 18 and Sept. 19, and the next date wasn't posted when we checked.
Meridian, Mississippi, has no year-round paint drop-off, and who you call depends on whether you live inside the city limits. Inside Meridian, Waste Pro won't take paint in your cart, and the city has held its own Household Hazardous Waste Day; the newest one we found was October 19, 2024. Outside the city limits in Lauderdale County, the county holds two free Amnesty Days a year at the Road Department on Windmill Drive. The 2026 dates, April 18 and September 19, have passed.
The two programs don't mix. The city said in 2023 that county residents can't use the city day, and the county says its Amnesty Day is for residents outside the Meridian city limits. Both programs are paid for with Mississippi DEQ grants: the city gets one for inside the limits and the county gets one for outside. The county's 2026 releases say the city holds its own amnesty events, but the newest city notice we found was for October 19, 2024.
The city contracts with Waste Pro (601-483-9777). Waste Pro's Meridian page lists tires, paint, hazardous materials and contractor waste as unacceptable. Crews take one Waste Pro cart and one personal container up to 50 gallons or 50 pounds. Waste Pro says to set out by 6 a.m.; the city's page says before 7 a.m. from October to April.
The September 2019, October 2023 and October 2024 city days ran 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Public Works Complex, 311 27th Avenue South, and North Hills Shopping Center, 4531 35th Avenue. Paint and paint thinner were on every list. We found no 2025 or 2026 city date.
Lauderdale County's five drop-off barns, on Lauderdale/Toomsuba Road, Center Hill Martin Road in Collinsville, North Lakeland Drive, Jeff Davis School Road and Windmill Drive, take bulky waste and white goods. They refuse hazardous materials, tires, batteries, household trash and contractor debris. Meridian Waste lists their hours as Monday to Friday 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The November 2023 county day was at the Lauderdale County Agri-Center, 1022 Highway 19 South, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Both 2026 days were at the Road Department, 210 Windmill Drive, from 8 a.m. to noon. The county said about 300 vehicles came through in April 2026. Check the newest notice for the place and hours.
Mississippi has no PaintCare program, so there are no PaintCare store drop-offs. Mississippi DEQ suggests using paint up or giving it to a theater group, school or Habitat for Humanity; we found no Meridian group that posts a paint policy. Unlike Jackson, where PaintCare's locator lists the city's Environmental Service Center as open Tuesdays, Thursdays and the 4th Saturday (a non-program listing for households and very small businesses in Hinds, Madison and Rankin counties), Meridian has no year-round site. Don't rely on Mississippi DEQ's recycling directory for Meridian: it still lists city curbside recycling, but the city's Garbage page says recycling is discontinued indefinitely.
Before the county Amnesty Day, check that your home is outside the Meridian city limits; the day is only for those households. Keep used oil to five gallons, and bring no more than five passenger tires. For a city day, the 2023 event had you fill out a form on arrival and then go to the bins staff named. Keep paint out of your Waste Pro or Meridian Waste cart while you wait. If storing paint, Mississippi DEQ suggests plastic wrap under the lid and storing the can upside down.
Full preparation checklist →There's no year-round site. City residents use the city's Household Hazardous Waste Day; the newest we found was Oct. 19, 2024, at the Public Works Complex and North Hills Shopping Center. Call Public Works at 601-485-1920 for the next date.
No. Waste Pro's City of Meridian page lists paint, tires, hazardous materials and contractor waste as unacceptable.
The county's free Solid Waste Amnesty Day at the Lauderdale County Road Department, 210 Windmill Drive. The county holds two a year; 2026's were April 18 and Sept. 19. Meridian Waste, the county hauler, says hazardous waste isn't permitted in your cart.
Solid Waste Enforcement Officer Daniel Mabry. The county's August 2026 release about the Sept. 19 day lists 601-816-9723, but its Solid Waste Enforcement page lists 601-816-7923 (cell) and 601-482-9797 (office). Try the office line if one doesn't work.
Neither the city nor the county publishes a paint limit. The county caps used oil at five gallons and tires at five per household; the city allowed up to 10 tires per resident in 2023.
Checked October 17, 2026: the City of Meridian's Garbage and Public Works pages, Waste Pro's City of Meridian page, Meridian Star stories (Sept. 2019, Oct. 2023, Nov. 2023), WTOK stories (May 2023, Oct. 2024, Aug. 2026), Lauderdale County's March, April and August 2026 Amnesty Day posts, its Solid Waste Enforcement and Road Department pages, Meridian Waste's 2024 Lauderdale County guidelines, Mississippi DEQ's household hazardous waste page and Lauderdale County recycling entry, PaintCare's state list and locator data (no Meridian-area listing). The county's Sept. 19 post and Solid Waste Enforcement page are served brotli-compressed; the reviewer decoded and read them directly. Unresolved: any 2025 or 2026 city collection day; the county's next date; which Mabry number is current; whether either program takes paint from businesses; whether dried latex is allowed in Waste Pro or Meridian Waste carts. We made no phone calls.
Checked October 17, 2026 against these sources, not by phone. How we research.
.jpg){kind=link}
.jpg){kind=link}