RECYCLE: The basics
The State of Connecticut has the goal of diverting 60% of municipal solid waste through reducing, reusing and recycling by 2024. However, residents recycled or composted only about 35% of waste in 2015, and the rates of recycling have remained flat. So we all must do our part to reach this target! Waste Free Greenwich helps residents recycle right but also provides tools to rethink materials management, consumer lifestyles and upstream impact by preventing waste in the first place. After all, recycling should be a last resort after reduction and reuse.
WHERE?
Starting July 1, 2020, residents are required to purchase a permit to use facilities at the Holly Hill Resource Recovery Facility at Holly Hill Lane in Greenwich. Holly Hill is open to Greenwich residents Monday - Friday from 7 am to 2:30 pm and Saturday 7 am to 12 noon. Permits are available online and by mail and cost $25 annually.
A licensed refuse hauler can be hired for home pick up of recyclables and trash. Residents are responsible for separation of waste and recycling, not the hauler.
WHAT?
Starting July 2018, new rules for recycling went into effect to reduce problems in processing and to avoid contamination. Basic guidelines are outlined in the flyer, published online on the Town of Greenwich website. The flyer was also mailed with tax bills in July 2019 and is available at Holly Hill. Keep this guide near your recycling bin for quick reference. A more detailed list of recyclables, along with a items no longer accepted and those which must be taken to Holly Hill, visit www.greenwichct.org/recycle or call Holly Hill at 203-869-6910.
The Basics: All recyclable items should be empty, rinsed, clean and open. No liquids, food or food-contaminated materials. Keep recyclable loose. Do not box, bag or bundle.
HOW?
Recyclables from Greenwich are transported from Holly Hill to the City Carting Recycling Center in Stamford, where materials are separated, processed and sold to businesses that will convert them into new products. The Town of Greenwich's guidelines for recyclables are therefore unique, as they were developed with regard to the market demand for particular, often non-mandated, materials and the capabilities of City Carting's processing center. Recycling regulations differ town by town, and Greenwich guidelines do not strictly adhere to those of the RecycleCT program, "What's In, What Out."