Recycle Electronic Equipment, Shred Old Documents This Saturday

The County of Union will sponsor a recycling event for electronic equipment and unwanted paper documents on Saturday, Oct. 27, so Union County residents can get rid of unwanted computers, televisions and other electronic equipment, and shred old personal documents in a secure and environmentally proper manner.

The special recycling event will take place from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Alcatel-Lucent Technologies facility, 600 Mountain Ave, New Providence, NJ 07974.

All residents of Union County are eligible to participate at no cost. There is a limit of six electronic items and/or four bags/boxes of paper per car.

“Computer monitors and old televisions are the source of a considerable amount of lead – about five pounds per screen,” said Freeholder Christopher Hudak, liaison to the Union County Solid Waste Advisory Board. “Up to 95 percent of most electronic appliances can be recycled. This is a responsible way to keep hazardous heavy metals out of our environment.”

A complete list of the materials that will be accepted on Oct. 27 is available at the Union County Bureau of Recycling and Planning website: www.ucnj.org/recycle. All that residents need to do is drive to the site with their electronic equipment and unwanted personal documents. Workers at the site will unload the vehicles. Pre-registration is not required for this collection.

Refrigerators, washers and dryers, microwaves, and air conditioners will not be accepted on Oct. 27. These items will be accepted at Union County’s new scrap metal recycling program, which is conducted twice each month in Clark, Mountainside, Rahway and Westfield. Visit the Union County website at www.ucnj.org/recycle for more information about the new scrap metal recycling program.

The electronics collection will be held rain or shine, for Union County residents only and not for businesses. Proof of Union County residency is required.

In addition to the special Oct. 27 electronics recycling event, sponsored by the County of Union, there are other local opportunities for residents to recycle electronic equipment. Visit www.ucnj.org/recycle for more computer and electronics recycling options.

The Oct. 27 paper-shredding event will take place from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., rain or shine. The shredding event will end before 2 p.m. if the shredding truck reaches capacity.

“Union County’s mobile document-shredding service helps residents eliminate clutter in their homes and also fight identity theft,” said Freeholder Chairman Alexander Mirabella. “It is a cost-effective way to assist our recycling efforts and it ties in with our other Go Green Initiatives.”

All Union County residents are eligible to use the paper-shredding service. In an effort to accommodate everyone, there is a limit of four, 10-pound bags or boxes per person. Documents should not be bound. Please remove plastic binders and paperclips. Paper that is wet/damp will not be accepted. Residents should continue to recycle non-confidential papers and magazines with their municipal recycling program.

Documents are put into 96-gallon containers provided by the shredding company. The items are then dumped onto a conveyor belt and shredded on site. Participants are welcome to view the shredding process via a closed-circuit television. The shredded documents are then recycled, shipped to paper mills and used as pulp.

The mobile shredding program is paid for through New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Recycling Enhancement Act Grant Funds.

Shredding may be cancelled in the event of extreme bad weather. Please call the Recycling Hotline for more information about future events, directions, or event day cancellation at (908) 654-9889 or visit us online at www.ucnj.org/recycle.