The Portage County Solid 91²Ö¿â Department has added six new drop-off locations to its holiday light recycling program. âThey clog the equipment,â Amanda Haffele, the director of the Portage County Solid 91²Ö¿â Department, said. âElectrical lights, all that stuff wrap around a certain equipment and someoneâs got to cut it out to shut the equipment down.â
The department collected over 1,800 lbs. of holiday lights last year. This year, Haffele expects them to collect more with the additional locations. The collected lights are recycled rather than thrown away. The metals can be melted down and reused for new electrical wires and other metal items.
Drop-off bins are available at Fleet Farm and Metro Markets locations across Portage County through Jan. 31. The program accepts only light strands. âItâs really intensive to take your lights off of the figurines, and so youâre putting more energy into taking, recycling, reusing something than it is in the output,â Haffele said.