‘Blue box’ pickup resumes Monday

After a week of no pickups, residents are reminded the recycling schedule will resume here Monday.
Those households that normally see pickups on Monday and Tuesday can expect to see their “blue boxes” picked up on those days.
But as there will be no pickup on New Year’s Day (Wednesday), those who normally see “blue box” pickup on Wednesday can put out their recyclables on Thursday.
And those who normally see Thursday pickup can expect the “blue box” truck to come by Friday.
The schedule will be completely back to normal the following week.
Operations and Facilities manager Pat Hickerson said the week-long break shouldn’t have been too much of an inconvenience for residents.
“In the past with NORA, the [Christmas] break has been a problem. I think last year, they shut down for two weeks and never advertised it or anything,” he noted.
“This year, we advertised in the newspaper and on the radio to make everyone know about it,” Hickerson added. “With the amount of materials we’ve been picking up on average, it shouldn’t be much of a problem.”
While many homes are sure to have a lot of wrapping paper left over from Christmas, residents are reminded that is not an accepted recyclable.
With the extra amount of waste that usually comes with the holiday celebrations, Hickerson noted people should remember what is and isn’t acceptable for recycling.
“Blue boxes” containing non-acceptable materials will be left at the curbside with a notice to the resident regarding the reason it was not taken.
Acceptable paper products include paper bags, newsprint, office paper, magazines (in small quantities only), and corrugated cardboard (cut to pieces a maximum size of 16″x24″).
Put these in a paper bag and put it in the “blue box.”
Unacceptable paper products include pop or beer cases, cereal boxes, egg cartons, milk cartons, tissue paper or Kleenex, and disposable diapers.
Acceptable metals include clean aluminum/steel beverage cans and clean metal food cans (rinse, remove labels, and crush). Unacceptable metals include metal toys, pie tins, aerosol spray cans, aluminum foil, jar lids, and paint cans.
Acceptable plastics include #1 & #2 plastics only. To find what number a plastic is, look on the bottom of the container in question. Please rinse the container.
Unacceptable plastics include plastic toys, shampoo containers, motor oil containers, plastic wrap, styrofoam, deodorant containers, and #3 to #6 plastics
And if you don’t currently recycle, the New Year might be a good time to start. “Blue boxes” can be purchased at the Public Works building on Fifth Street East for $8 each.