*Sustainable Seekonk*

The Seekonk Recycling Committee would like to remind residents of all the great recycling and sustainability programs and resources we have available in town:

What's up with the Blue Bags?! There's been lots of chatter about our town trash bags lately, likely due to the recent price increase. While it might seem like the price keeps going UP, no more major changes should be expected for the near future. There was a small annual increase in 2023, that some vendors were very slow to implement-so it may have seemed like that price change just happened-but in reality it was effective July 2023. Then in July 2024, the 10 year contract we had held with the hauler expired-the Town went out to bid and ended up with a new 5 year contract with the same hauler. The new contract was refreshing pricing that had last been negotiated TEN YEARS prior-and we all know things have changed since then, so unfortunately that meant a larger jump in both the annual bill (for collection costs) and the trash bags (for tonnage costs) for 2024 and going forward. While the new contract does include nominal increases each year for the next 5 years, we don't expect nearly as much of an increase year over year, if at all. The budget decisions are also dependent on how many residents are compliant with the Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) trash model, where residents buy town trash bags (blue bags) for ALL trash going in your bin, therefore paying only for what you throw. The more you throw, the more you pay-and the less you throw, the less you pay. But if residents are not using blue bags, that means they are not paying their share, which may cause the prices to go up for everyone. Please reach out to the Committee or Recycling Coordinator DPW anytime with questions or for help reducing your trash-we'd love for everyone to have to buy less bags!

Seekonk Recycling Committee has open seats! We meet monthly to help coordinate resources, education and awareness of sustainability and recycling topics in and around Seekonk. We partner with the library for programming, host a rain barrel or compost bin sale each year, organize the annual Litter Patrol, and help answer questions about what can be recycled and where. If you’re interested in making a difference in the town you live in-please consider joining the committee! We especially need partnership with each of the schools, so if you’re a parent or teacher that wants to help foster sustainability in the schools, we’d love to hear from you.

Seekonk DPW Offices(871 Taunton Ave) has textile collection bins and a Terracycle collection shed in the parking lot, and rechargeable batteries collection bin and eye glasses collection inside the lobby. They also accept fluorescent light bulbs-including CFL bulbs and tubes under 4ft. These should never go in your curbside bins! Stores like Lowes, Home Depot, Best Buy and Staples also accept most of these items as well. Single use-alkaline batteries, incandescent bulbs and LED bulbs can go in the trash.

Terracycle Recycling Collections The Recycling Committee is partnering with Terracycle to save hundreds of everyday items from the trash, and send them in to be recycled into new products. The shed at DPW has bins to deposit items like toothbrushes, toothpaste tubes, deodorant, baby food pouches, air fresheners and much more. See the full list in the DPW lobby, or at Facebook.com/SustainableSeekonk (you do NOT need to have a Facebook account to see the posts on this page!)

Seekonk Transfer Station/TARF (351 Fall River Ave) is open year round Mon-Fri 8am-3pm for drop off of yard waste (leaves, grass, twigs). Upcoming Bulky Waste drop off days at TARF are Sept 14, Oct 12, Nov 9 -buy a pass at DPW for $29 to bring items that are too big to fit in blue bags/curbside trash bins. But please try to pass things along for reuse before trashing them! Bulky Waste pickup continues on the 2nd & 4th Wednesday of each month for furniture and misc bulky items ($8.50), metal/electronic ($8.50) & appliance ($16) pickup is the 3rd Tuesday, and mattresses ($65) are the 3rd Wednesday. Buy stickers at DPW.

Food Waste Compost Collection at TARF The Recycling Committee is sponsoring a collection bin at TARF from Black Earth Compost, residents can bring their household food waste and deposit in the bins. Accepted items include: fruits & vegetables, egg shells, bread, cereal, meat & bones, wooden chopsticks & toothpicks, coffee grinds & filters and more. See BlackEarthCompost.com for a full list and tips on collection and transport. You can dump food waste directly into the bins from your home container or use certified compostable bags-no plastic bags please! Please reach out to the Recycling Coordinator at DPW for more information about this program.

Interested in a Recycling Audit? The Recycling Committee is offering appointments for committee members to stop by your home and go over items in your bin to ensure the correct items are going where they should go. We know it’s hard to keep track of what items are recyclable or not-so we’d like to help in real time with real items that you use everyday. No shame-just learning! Reach out to the Recycling Coordinator at DPW or the Recycling Committee on Facebook to book your appointment.

Don’t Trash It! Consider donating items that are still usable-Savers in North Attleboro has easy drive up drop off service, Angel’s Care Closet takes a wide variety of items or you can visit DONATIONTOWN.ORG for a list of local services that will pickup items from your home. If items are broken or no longer usable, stores like Staples, Lowes, Home Depot and Best Buy take back all kinds of electronics, bulbs, ink/toner, batteries, cell phone cases, pens and markers and more. Use the Recycle Locator at CTA.tech website to find all your nearby options for electronics. If you’re interested in a town wide CURB ALERT day-where everyone can put out items for free and you can plan to drive around to “shop” for items you want or need, please reach out to the Recycling Committee, our Recycling Coordinator at DPW, or Sustainable Seekonk on Facebook.

The Library of Things- did you know the Seekonk Library has way more than books? With things like karaoke machines, metal detectors, stud finders, instruments, cameras, computers & more, it's an amazing way to borrow what you need & save money! What items would you like to see added? Reach out to the Recycling Coordinator at DPW, or the library with ideas.

Recycling Tip of The Month Try to skip out on one single use plastic item this month-just one-and see how it goes. It takes some time to change behavior, so pick just one thing to change in your daily routine and enjoy the $benefits$! Some great suggestions: plastic straws (swap for a stainless steel or silicone reusable straw), plastic cups (try a stainless steel tumbler on clearance in the camping section right now), plastic utensils (say no thank you at the take out counter and grab your bamboo set that weighs nothing in your bag, or a plain real stainless steel set in a travel pouch) or skipping the plastic bags at checkout (forgot your bags in your car? Just place the items back in your cart or basket and bag them in your bags at your car). Please remember to recycle right, and…. Reduce-Reuse-Recycle (in THAT order!)