Town Of Wakefield: New Cardboard Drop-Off Option At Nahant Yardwaste Site

Press release from the Town of Wakefield:

August 5, 2021 - 9:36am

Are the shipping boxes from your online deliveries overwhelming your recycling pile? Feel free to drop off your clean, dry corrugated cardboard at the Nahant Street yardwaste site (“the Pit”). A new disposal container is available to residents when the yardwaste site is open, and no permit is required to use it. View the site’s schedule.

This disposal container is different than residential curbside recycling bins in that this will not be sent to a sorting facility; the container will be for corrugated cardboard only. Corrugated board contains the extra layer of fiber that zig-zags between the brown sheets, making it tougher to tear and sturdier for shipping. Please do not use this service for cereal boxes, shoeboxes, pizza boxes, or other paper products. A load free of contamination will allow the Town to sell the cardboard and cover the costs of the service.

Those taking advantage of the disposal site should only bring dry, flattened corrugated cardboard that is free of Styrofoam, peanuts, plastic wrap, or bubble wrap. Tape and labels on a box are acceptable, though it should be free from oil and grease.

According to Earth911, over half of cardboard collected is used to make new cardboard boxes, and additional cardboard can be downcycled into paperboard (used for cereal boxes) or chipboard (used for shoeboxes). Since making one ton of virgin cardboard requires three tons of trees, the process helps your recycling pile and the planet.

For those that wish to recycle but do not want to use the new cardboard disposal bin, remember that an unlimited amount of recycling barrels can be put out curbside on residents’ designated recycling weeks.

Questions about recycling or the Nahant Street Yardwaste Site can be directed to the Wakefield DPW at 781-246-6301.

This press release was produced by the Town of Wakefield.The views expressed here are the author’s own.