December 27, 2022 – The Macon County Environmental Management Recycling Center says strings of unwanted Christmas lights will be collected for recycling until January 31.
You can place strings of lights in the specially marked, outdoor, blue collection box at the Macon County Environmental Management Recycling Center at 1750 N. 21st Street, Decatur.
Bulbs do not need to be removed from strands of lights to be recycled but all packaging and any other attachments such as hangers, garlands or decorations should be removed before dropping off.
Strings of lights that are excessively worn or not in proper working order are often discovered by holiday decorators. Rather than disposing of these unwanted light strands in the trash, recycling proves to be a better option. Recycling allows the metals and plastics in the unwanted strands to be reused in new products – reducing extraction costs, conserving resources, and saving energy.
When replacing strings of worn or non-working lights, holiday decorators are encouraged to consider LED lights, which use about a tenth of the energy of conventional light strings and typically last many times longer.
