Go Green and Recycle Your Pumpkin after Halloween

Waste Management of Orange County is inviting residents to go green this Halloween by disposing of unwanted pumpkins in their green waste carts to be composted following this year’s Halloween celebration.

“It takes a lot of effort and creativity to pick, carve and turn a pumpkin into the perfect creation,” said Eloisa Orozco, spokesperson for Waste Management of Southern California. “By sending your once glowing pumpkin to be composted after Halloween via your green waste cart, you’ll rest assured knowing your perfect creation will be put to beneficial reuse since organic materials such as pumpkins are an excellent source of nutrients that are essential for plant growth.”

To ensure that expertly carved pumpkins are brought back to life properly, residents should remove any materials such as candles, glow sticks and non-vegetative decorations and place the pumpkin in their green waste cart.

The following are additional tips to help reduce, reuse and recycle this Halloween.

• Bake the pumpkin seeds. Pumpkin seeds make a delicious treat. When carving jack-o-lanterns this year, save the seeds and roast them afterward. This is an easy, fun and tasty way to use up every little bit of the pumpkin and create a healthy snack too.
• Do it Yourself decorations. Use repurposed materials from the recycling bin to make unique Halloween decor. Creating your own hair-raising decorations will put less stress on your wallet and the planet. Share your decorations with us @WM_SoCal.
• Hold a costume exchange party. Halloween costumes are often worn only once. By trading costumes with a friend, last year’s outfit can get another wear and you can get something new. You can also donate unwanted costumes to local charities to help the reuse cycle going while giving back to those in need!

about waste management

Waste Management, based in Houston, Texas, is the leading provider of comprehensive waste management services in North America. Through its subsidiaries, the company provides collection, transfer, recycling and resource recovery, and disposal services. It is also a leading developer, operator and owner of landfill gas-to-energy facilities in the United States. The company’s customers include residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers throughout North America. To learn more information about Waste Management visit www.wm.com or www.thinkgreen.com.