On Saturday, April 12, the Northampton Reuse Committee will hold a Spring Recycling Rally from 9am-12pm at Smith Vocational High School, 80 Locust Street. The event is free and open to the public. Large pieces of white Styrofoam and plastic bags from pellet-stove pellets will be collected for recycling (details below). In addition, on-site secure document shredding will be available courtesy of Pro-Shred of Wilbraham.
Pellet bag and Styrofoam recycling are emerging markets. Unlike other material collected for recycling in curbside and supermarket programs, there is not high demand for the material. We have identified a facility willing to process the material for eventual sale and will collect the material as long as they are able to do so. As with most disposable material, it is better to avoid use and waste generation than to recycle it.
Details:
Styrofoam
All foam must be white, clean and dry, with no attached paper or plastic. No colored foam, food-related foam (cups, plates, trays), or packing peanuts will be accepted.
Please note: The facility accepting our collected material considers colored and food-related foam contaminants to their product. The Reuse Committee does not encourage the use of clean drinking water to wash food-related foam for the purpose of recycling.
Pellet Bags
Bags must be empty, dry and relatively clean. Only bags from wood pellets will be accepted.
Personal documents
Shredding personal or confidential documents such as financial and medical records, legal papers, credit card statements, income tax files and cancelled checks is recommended for security purposes. Pro-Shred will shred your material on-site and will recycled the shredded paper.
Please bring only clean and dry paper. Manila folders are OK, but plastic folders and page dividers are not. A per-person limit of two curbside recycling-sized boxes will be enforced.