City of Gainesville Offers Holiday Recycling Tips

The City of Gainesville Division of Solid Waste offers these guidelines to help neighbors properly recycle holiday items this season:

• Natural holiday trees and wreaths are accepted for collection curbside with regularly collected yard waste.
• Remove all tinsel, garland, ornaments, hooks, lights, wires, and other decorations from natural trees and wreaths before placing them curbside for pickup. Remember to remove tree stands and store them for next year.
• Stringed holiday lights may be dropped off for recycling through the end of January at the main entrance of the City’s Public Works building, located at 405 NW 39th Avenue. (Holiday lights also may be recycled year-round at any Alachua County Rural Collection Center.)
• Other lights such as bubble lights, compact florescent bulbs (CFLs), florescent tubes, liquid-filled lights, and neon lights, should be taken to the Alachua County’s Household Hazardous Waste Collection Center for disposal.
• Only non-glittery wrapping paper is accepted for recycling and may be placed with other recyclable paper in orange recycle bins. 
• Metal holiday tins are accepted for recycling. Tins should be emptied with lids removed before being placed in blue recycle bins. 
• Artificial trees can be disposed of through the residential bulk collection program. Artificial trees taller than five feet in length should be broken down into smaller pieces before placing curbside for collection.