Recycle holiday lights and cords to benefit Cleveland zoo
Rachel Weller of the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes at the Cleveland Zoo Recycling Center, dropping off lights collected during last year's recycling drive.
Cleveland Heights Green Team (CHGT), in partnership with the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes and Heights Libraries’ Lee Road branch, will collect broken, burned-out string lights, extension cords and power strips, to benefit the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo's Lights for Lions program.
Since 2021, when this recycling-drive program launched, Heights residents have recycled more than 3,200 lbs. of string lights and extension cords.
Beginning Saturday, Dec. 28, drop-off bins will be available at the parking-lot entrance to the Lee Road Library. A collection bin is already available in the Nature Center’s lobby.
The recycling drive will end on Saturday, Feb. 1. For more information, visit www.chgreenteam.org.
In addition, CHGT is asking residents to save EPS foam from boxed shipments received during after the holidays. EPS foam is the rigid, lightweight Styrofoam used to protect boxed contents from damage during the handling and transportation process.
Heights residents will have a chance to recycle the foam in April, when CHGT and Heights Libraries will partner with Edgewater Surf Limited to collect EPS foam as part of their Earth Month in the Heights initiative. Collection details will be made available in March.
While EPS foam can be recycled, curbside recycling programs in most municipalities, including the Heights, do not accept it. EPS foam is bulky, takes up much landfill space, and can take hundreds of years to decompose.
Catalina Wagers
Catalina Wagers is a resident of Cleveland Heights' Fairfax neighborhood. She is actively involved with local organizations supporting causes and programs focused on the advancement of NEO through better access to education, policy advocacy, and environmental protection. She is co-founder of Cleveland Heights Green Team.