Recycling Changes at FHF for 2009

As you will read in the December Windmill Board of Directors - Woodchips and Notes from Debbie, a change is being negotiated in the trash and recycling contract for FHF in 2009. Trash pickups will only be on Tuesdays while recycling pickups will increase to weekly on every Friday. Some FHF residents may not realize what is re­cyclable at this time. Here is some information that will help you to make the most of the increased recycling pickups as well as possibilities for how to deal with other recycling options not covered by our community’s con-tract with the Opdenaker company.

According to the Concord Township Winter 2008 news-letter, and confirmed by telephone contact with the Opdenaker company, FHF residents may put the following items in our recycling bins:

·        Glass — any color

·        Metal cans — aluminum, steel, and tin (NO aluminum foil)

·        Plastics - #1 and #2 (the number is usually on the bottom of the plastic container shown inside a triangle)

·        Newspaper

·        Phone books

·        Junk mail

·        Paper bags

·        Cardboard

·        Cereal boxes (also known as paperboard)

We are asked to please remember to rinse out all glass, metal, and plastic containers put in the recycling bins.

Also, paper, cardboard, and cereal boxes should be dry and free of any food, grease, or similar contamination.

Opdenaker staff requests that you do not use plastic bags in the recycling containers. To cope with this restriction, you may place your paper/cardboard/junk mail in a paper bag and put it in your recycling bin. You could also tie up those paper/cardboard items with twine. You might also want to place the tied bundle on top of your recy­cling bin to keep light weight plastic and aluminum containers from being blown out of your bin and around our community - creating an unsightly mess that will likely land on someone else’s property. 

Plastic bags from grocery and other retail stores may be recycled at some grocery stores (Acme, Giant, and ShopRite) as well as the Recycle Delaware site. This site, run by the Delaware Solid Waste Authority, has bins behind the Sports Authority store at the Brandywine Commons shopping center in which you may place all of the above types of recyclables. This location is along Route 202, two tenths of a mile south of Naamans Road on the right hand side, directly across from the first entrance to Concord Mall Once you turn into Brandywine Commons property, drive straight back, following the Recycle Delaware sign, where the road will wind back to the recycling bins. This site also provides containers for recycling of aerosol cans (with other metal cans), household batteries, electronic goods (you must be able to carry the items into the walk-in recycling container yourself), and clothing and textiles (clean clothing, drapes, sheets, towels, hats, belts, paired socks and shoes).

Concord Township also has facilities (near the Library and GV Middle School) which include igloo type bins for glass (separated by color) and aluminum cans as well as a large container for newspaper, paper bags, and junk mail.

The Delaware county web site notes that unwanted cell phones with their power cords that plug into the wall (not the auto) may be dropped off for recycling and re­programming as emergency 911 phones for domestic abuse programs at all Delaware county libraries as well as at the Bethel Township municipal building.

The Delaware County website also provides information about household hazardous waste collection events. Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs (CFLs) have been added to the items accepted at those events. There are no more such events in 2008, and the 2009 events were not yet listed on the website.

Finally, retail stores may have specialized recycling op­tions. Staples has started a large item recycling for computer and fax equipment for which they charge $10 per piece. They also offer credits to future purchases for re­cycling certain brands of inkjet printer cartridges and free recycling of cell phones and rechargeable batteries. At Office Depot, you can purchase small, medium, or large boxes for $5, $1 0, and $15 respectively in which to put electronic recyclables (list available at www.officedepot.com website) and bring them to the store for recycling.

Best Buy has bins at its entrance in which you can recy­cle cell phones, inkjet printer cartridges, and rechargeable batteries. Best Buy also provides mailing envelopes which can be used to mail in these items for recycling. Office Depot also provides free recycling for these items. Circuit City has free recycling for the rechargeable batteries and cell phones.

All in all, we have many opportunities to become better stewards of the environment we all live in and which our grandchildren will inherit from us. The above list contains only those that this author has found. Certainly there are others that you, the readers, know of. We will provide periodic updates to this recycling information and welcome your input to help inform all of your FHF neighbors. To provide such information for future publi­cation, please contact the editor of By the Windmill at the phone number or email address listed on page one of each issue.

Submitted by Marty Frick, 12/1/08