Time to retire old Christmas lights? How about the tree? Here are KC recycling spots
Look, we’re not judging you if, a couple weeks from now, you still haven’t taken down your holiday lights or Christmas tree. We’re here to help.
With the holidays coming to an end, there are endless chores. Tossing broken lights, returning presents you didn’t want, disassembling artificial trees or hauling off real ones. And a lot of those chores generate considerable waste.
In fact, according to the Mid-America Regional Council, we create 25% more waste between Thanksgiving and Christmas than we do the rest of the year. Keeping what can be recycled out of landfills becomes especially important during the holiday season.
That’s where groups like MARC and Westlake Hardware come in.
Until Jan. 12, the region’s Westlake Hardware stores are accepting your old light strands. Raymond Brown, a general manager in Lee’s Summit, said the metals in the wire and bulbs can be recycled along with the glass. Brown said the program has been well-received.
“We’re giving them an outlet to drop off these lights so they can be recycled and we’re not adding to the landfill,” Brown said. “We’re actually doing our part.”
According to MARC’s RecycleSpot.org, several community centers and other businesses are offering similar programs. You can also take your lights straight to a recycling center, or Holiday LEDs will give you 15% off lights if you ship in your old ones.
Brown said his location has participated in the program for at least five years, and it’s become popular.
“In prior years, the company would actually come pick them up weekly,” Brown said, “and we would fill up probably four or five trash cans a week starting from the first week of December all the way through probably the week of Christmas. It’s a lot of lights.”
Keeping Christmas trees out of the waste stream is also essential, said Matt Briggs, outreach director for MARC’s solid waste division.
“The problem with any type of organic waste … is once it gets in the landfill it breaks down to create methane gas,” Briggs said, “and that’s actually a climate changing gas — a pretty powerful one at that.”
Missouri bans Christmas trees from its landfills, and they’re highly discouraged, but allowed, in Kansas, he said. But there are numerous ways to reuse or recycle trees. Some communities sink them into ponds to create fish habitats. Others chop them into wood chips or mulch for erosion control and landscaping.
For garlands, wreaths and other smaller greenery, Briggs suggested composting.
But getting rid of that big Christmas tree can be a chore. Briggs suggested residents first call their trash providers to see if they can have it hauled away. If you have to haul it away yourself, he said, there are numerous drop-off locations around the metro.
Kansas City residents can drop off their trees on Saturdays at any of the city’s three leaf and brush sites with proof of residency. They’re also accepting trees Monday through Friday, but will charge a $5 fee on those days.
That’s where RecycleSpot.org, which Briggs manages, comes in handy. Enter the item you’re hoping to recycle, its condition, your ZIP code and how far you’re willing to travel, and you’ll get a list of centers that will accept the items your weekly pickup provider won’t take.
And the site isn’t just for recycling your old holiday gear. It offers advice for numerous hard-to-recycle items you may be hoping to keep out of the landfills, like waffle makers, laptops and stained glass windows.
“In terms of overall holiday waste, there’s still plenty of it out there, unfortunately,” Briggs said, “so we’re trying to put a dent in that.”
Allison Kite: 816-234-4088, @Allie_Kite
This story was originally published December 26, 2019 at 5:00 AM.
