Westford Curbside Recycling Refresher

Did you get your yearly Recycling guide?  Every July, the Westford Recycling Commission sends a newly revised Recycling guide to every household in town.  It should have arrived in your mailbox about a week ago.  Now is a great time to take a look and refresh yourself on recycling guidelines.

There are no big changes to recycling this year.  One thing to note is the new website – www.westfordma.gov/recycling  and email address: recycling@westfordma.gov. 

Here are a few things some people may not know:

• Everything recyclable can go into the SAME container.  Westford has been a single stream recycler for about two years.  No need to separate paper from plastic from glass anymore.
• If you need another recycling bin, here are some options. 
• Westford recycles ALL plastics labeled #1 - #7.  However, no Styrofoam of any kind, even if it has a #6 on it, can be recycled curbside.
• You CANNOT curbside recycle plastic bags or wrappers, even if they have a recycling symbol on them.  They get caught in the sorting mechanism.  These can be recycled at many local grocery stores.
• Pizza boxes CAN be recycled as long as there isn’t too much grease and all food is removed. If in doubt, rip off the top and recycle that.
• Aluminum foil CAN be recycled.  This includes Hershey kiss wrappers, pie plates, and foil lids on yogurt.
• You CAN recycle all bottle caps and lids from metal cans.

The guide and website is a wealth of information on recycling other things as well.