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VALLEY STREAM GUIDE
www.liherald.com
THE DO’S AND DON’TS OF RECYCLING IN VALLEY STREAM Do: Make sure recyclables are clean and dry. Make sure that cardboard and paper items are tied up using twine. Recycle plastic containers marked No. 1 and No. 2. Recycle tin and aluminum cans, trays, foil and bakeware. Recycle glass jars and bottles.
Valley Stream ‘recycles right’ By Peter Belfiore
T
his year Valley Stream embarked on a new effort to increase its recycling efficiency by switching to a dualstream recycling system. Operating on a biweekly basis, sanitation workers now alternate between collecting plastics, glass and metal one week, and paper and cardboard the next. It was an effort, village officials said, to save the village money as well as protect the environment by cutting down on recyclables that are inadvertently sent to landfills. The change was a response to major disruptions in the international market for recyclable materials after China stopped cheaply accepting the world’s, paper, glass metal and plastics. With the increased price in recycling, and certain plastics and papers no longer cost-efficient to
recycle, recycling firms are now more likely to dump remaining items they still do recycle into landfills if they are mixed with unrecyclable materials, and pass the increased costs on to the municipalities they contract with. “Recycling is not just a Valley Stream problem; it’s a nationwide problem,” Sanitation Department Supervisor Brian Leavey explained to residents during a Q&A session for residents in December. “A lot of recyclables are getting thrown into immiscible solid waste, and it’s going into landfills, and that’s not fair for that to happen . . . the best way to rectify the problem is to do things through dual stream and making sure we are throwing the right items in the [recycling] bins.” Peter Belfiore/Herald
Above Photo: Village deputy treasurer and Waste Transfer Station Coordinator David Sabatino explained to residents how to identify items that are still currently recyclable at a Q&A in December.
• • • • • Don’t: cardboard outside in • Leave rainy weather for more than a day. plastic containers • Recycle marked Nos. 3 through 7. Styrofoam, plastic • Recycle wrapping or plastic bags. wire hangers, cables, • Recycle cords, rope, curtain rods or tools. pens, markers or • Recycle plastic mats. appliances such as • Recycle microwaves or toasters. waxed cardboard • Recycle such as paper cups or cereal boxes. coated paper or • Recycle cardboard such as pizza boxes. containers of toxic • Recycle liquids such as herbicides and pesticides, even if empty. Instead, use the Town of Hempstead’s Stop Throwing Out Pollutants, or STOP program.
To contact the Sanitation Department Call: (516) 825-8108
