How to Recycle Holiday String Lights

Last year, Chelmsford residents dropped off over 100 pounds of broken string lights for recycling.

It’s important to discard your unusable holiday lights in an evironmentally friendly way. This means to not throw them in the trash or the curbside recycling bin. Most holiday string lights contain plastic, glass and copper. The materials found in many bulbs and strands contain elements such as mercury and lead that can seep into landfills and lead to contamination. In addition, if the lights are sent to recycling facilities, they get tangled up in the sorting machines, which is dangerous for staff and shuts down the entire facility.

No need to worry, because the Chelmsford Recycling Committee has a recycling solution for all those unusable string lights which can be recycled at a special facility where the parts are used to make other produts. They have placed three collection boxes around town: Senior Center, Adams Library, and DPW for residents to drop off unusable string lights. Lights will be collected from now until January 31, 2024.

For any questions, please contact Chris Haley, Sustainability Manager at 978-250-5023 or chaley@chelmsfordma.gov.

Not in the curbside bin, that is!

Drop off string lights in a collection box at the Senior Center, Adams Library, or DPW office.