Leonard Ruszczyk
Chair

100 Center St.
Pembroke, MA 02359

Committee meets the 3rd Wednesday at Town Hall.

Recycling Committee members

Leonard Ruszczyk – Chairman. term expires 2014
Michael Virta– term expires 2014
Lisa Cullity– term expires 2014
Gordon martin- term expires 2013
Tom Irving-term expires 2013
Thomas driscoll- term expires 2013
Ben Bastianelli III- term expires 2015

Single stream recycling: What to put in the bin
Message about single stream.

Did You Know?

From the desk of the Recycling Committee

Did you know……… aluminum is the most plentiful metal on the earth’s crust. It is found in every clay bank and in most of the common rocks on the earth. At present, however, it is not economical to extract aluminum from clay. Aluminum can be recycled an infinite number of times, and can be processed and placed back in retail stores in as little as two months.
The number of aluminum cans thrown away in the United States every year could rebuild an entire commercial air fleet four times a year. Throwing away just one aluminum can is comparable to wasting six ounces of gasoline, according to the Aluminum Association of America. If you are having a difficult time distinguishing aluminum from metal, use a magnet to tell the difference. Steel is magnetic and aluminum is not..
Please be sure to take a few moments and separate out all your recyclables and place them in the recycling cart. Remember, saving natural resources helps the environment and saves the Town money.

Recycle, Join the Pembroke Team!!!

Did you know………there are over 50 different types of plastic that exist today with new types being developed as research continues. Different plastics are used for different purposes, but most of them tend to be strong, durable, lightweight and resistant to corrosion. They are often less expensive than other materials and can be made in a wide variety of colors.
It is difficult to imagine a world without plastics. Among the most versatile materials ever developed, plastic can be made to resemble and even replace a range of materials such as metal, wood, glass, stone and cloth. When heated to a liquid or semi-solid form, plastics can be molded into almost any desired shape and when cooled, will harden as a solid. Recycled plastic can be made into a variety of things – new containers are one possibility, and more automobile parts are made from plastic than ever before. Your old milk jugs, laundry detergent bottles or soda bottles could end up being made into carpeting, clothing or even plastic lumber. Recycling plastic has never been easier! However, plastic is still frequently thrown away.
Be sure to take a few moments and separate all your recyclables and placed them in the recycling cart. Remember, saving natural resources helps the environment and saves money for the Town.

Recycle, Join the Pembroke Team!!!

Did you know……… a glass bottle that is sent to the landfill can take up to one million years to break down. A recycled glass bottle only needs 30 days to go full circle, from the time it leaves your kitchen recycling bin until it can appear on a store shelf as a new container.  Glass containers are 100-percent recyclable, which means they can be recycled an infinite number of times with no loss of purity or quality in the glass.
Every ton of glass that is recycled saves more than one ton of raw materials needed to create new glass, including 1,300 pounds of sand, 410 pounds of soda ash and 380 pounds of limestone. Making new glass means heating the glass to 2,600 degrees Fahrenheit which requires a lot of energy and creates a lot of air pollution. Making glass from old glass (called “cullet”) consumes 40% less energy than making glass from raw materials.
Collect your household’s glass containers and rinse them out. Ceramics, drinking glasses and any kind of light bulb cannot be placed in the recycling cart.
Please be sure to take a few moments and separate all your recyclables and place them in the recycling cart. Remember, saving natural resources helps the environment and saves the Town money.

Recycle, Join the Pembroke Team!!!

Did you know………. every year in Massachusetts, over 260,000 tons of textiles are disposed of at incinerators and landfills? 95% can be reused or recycled for its scrap value. Most people are unaware of how much clothing and other textiles they can donate and recycle. There’s no need to question or judge the condition of out-of-style or worn clothing. Torn shirts, paint stained pants, back packs, old pocket books, belts, stuffed animals that lost its stuffing, blankets, pillows and even a single shoe or sneaker can be recycled in the used clothing collection container.   
            It’s possible to recycle almost 100% of all the above items. All you have to do is keep it dry. If your textile is wet, be sure to allow it to dry before you place them into the collection container.
            Textile recycling creates jobs, funds charitable organizations, promotes small businesses and encourages recycled product development. One interesting thing that you may not know is local textile recyclers offer meaningful employment for special needs workers. The added benefit of donating these items is the fact that most good clothing items helps needy families in Massachusetts.

Did You Know……… over 2,000 years ago, the Chinese discovered that a thin, wet layer of interlocking fibers becomes paper when it dries. The first papermaking materials consisted of fibers from rags, the bark of trees, plants and grasses such as hemp, bamboo, jute and straw.

Most paper and paper products manufactured today use fibers derived from wood, primarily from conifers such as spruce, fir, pine, and hemlock and some deciduous trees such as birch, oak and aspen.
When newspaper fibers are recycled for the first time, the individual fibers are long. Every time newspaper is recycled, the fibers break down and become shorter and shorter. The problem is that short fibers, even when they are interlocked with other short fibers, make the final product weak and unstable. The answer to this problem is to introduce long fibers into the mix. 

Americans have been recycling paper for only three hundred years. Foreign paper makers have been recycling paper for two thousand years. This means that America’s recycled paper fibers are in great demand and foreign buyers are willing to pay a higher price for it.

Please be sure to take a few moments and separate all your recyclables. Remember, trees have to be cut down to make new paper products and for every ton of paper that is recycled, 17 trees will be saved. You may have to flatten the gift boxes before placing them in the recycling cart. If the recycling cart becomes full and you still have cardboard that needs to be recycled, it’s okay to fill another barrel and mark the top box with a marker indicating that the contents are recyclables. 

                        Recycle, Join the Pembroke Team!!!

            Did you know………there are over 50 different types of plastic that exist today with new types being developed as research continues. Different plastics are used for different purposes, but most of them tend to be strong, durable, lightweight and resistant to corrosion. They are often less expensive than other materials and can be made in a wide variety of colors.
It is difficult to imagine a world without plastics. Among the most versatile materials ever developed, plastic can be made to resemble and even replace a range of materials such as metal, wood, glass, stone and cloth. When heated to a liquid or semi-solid form, plastics can be molded into almost any desired shape and when cooled, will harden as a solid. Recycled plastic can be made into a variety of things – new containers are one possibility, and more automobile parts are made from plastic than ever before. Your old milk jugs, laundry detergent bottles or soda bottles could end up being made into carpeting, clothing or even plastic lumber. Recycling plastic has never been easier! However, plastic is still frequently thrown away.
Be sure to take a few moments and separate all your recyclables and placed them in the recycling cart. Remember, saving natural resources helps the environment and saves money for the Town.

Recycle, Join the Pembroke Team!!!

Did you know……… aluminum is the most plentiful metal on the earth’s crust. It is found in every clay bank and in most of the common rocks on the earth. At present, however, it is not economical to extract aluminum from clay. Aluminum can be recycled an infinite number of times, and can be processed and placed back in retail stores in as little as two months.
The number of aluminum cans thrown away in the United States every year could rebuild an entire commercial air fleet four times a year. Throwing away just one aluminum can is comparable to wasting six ounces of gasoline, according to the Aluminum Association of America. If you are having a difficult time distinguishing aluminum from metal, use a magnet to tell the difference. Steel is magnetic and aluminum is not..
Please be sure to take a few moments and separate out all your recyclables and place them in the recycling cart. Remember, saving natural resources helps the environment and saves the Town money.

Recycle, Join the Pembroke Team!!!

Did you know……… a glass bottle that is sent to the landfill can take up to one million years to break down. A recycled glass bottle only needs 30 days to go full circle, from the time it leaves your kitchen recycling bin until it can appear on a store shelf as a new container.  Glass containers are 100-percent recyclable, which means they can be recycled an infinite number of times with no loss of purity or quality in the glass.
Every ton of glass that is recycled saves more than one ton of raw materials needed to create new glass, including 1,300 pounds of sand, 410 pounds of soda ash and 380 pounds of limestone. Making new glass means heating the glass to 2,600 degrees Fahrenheit which requires a lot of energy and creates a lot of air pollution. Making glass from old glass (called “cullet”) consumes 40% less energy than making glass from raw materials.
Collect your household’s glass containers and rinse them out. Ceramics, drinking glasses and any kind of light bulb cannot be placed in the recycling cart.
Please be sure to take a few moments and separate all your recyclables and place them in the recycling cart. Remember, saving natural resources helps the environment and saves the Town money.

Recycle, Join the Pembroke Team!!!

Did you know……… very little oil is needed to contaminate fresh water? One gallon of used motor oil is enough to foul one million gallons of drinking water. Waste oil is an amazing resource; one gallon of used motor oil provides the equivalent lubricating effect of forty-two gallons of crude oil.
Used motor oil can be reprocessed into fuel that can be used in furnaces for heat, or in power plants to generate electricity for homes, schools, and businesses. It can also be used in industry and utility boilers, blended for marine fuels and many other uses. Used motor oil can be re-fined into lubricating oils that meet the same API specifications as virgin motor oil. Recycling waste oil saves energy and a valuable resource. An estimated 1.3 billion gallons of used motor oil is generated each year from oil changes performed from repair shops and do-it-yourselfers.
Most service stations, repair facilities and quick lubes will accept used motor oil without charge. Retailers will also accept your used oil if you can prove you purchased the oil at their store. Remember to save your sales receipt and the original oil container. Be careful when you pour the used oil into the container.
Please be sure to take a few moments and separate out all your recyclables and place them in the recycling cart. Remember, saving natural resources helps the environment and saves money for the Town.

Recycle, Join the Pembroke Team!!!

Did you know……… more than 3 billion batteries are sold every year in the United States? Batteries contain toxic chemicals and heavy metals including mercury and lead which can cause life-threatening diseases and child birth defects. An average car battery contains 18 pounds of lead and 1 pound of sulfuric acid.
Instead of buying the cheaper alkaline batteries, consider purchasing rechargeable batteries. In the long run they will save you money and reduce the toxicity in the waste stream. Rechargeable batteries can be recharged hundreds of times without losing the ability to hold a charge while single-use batteries are “one and done.” Be sure to shop around for good deals on rechargeable batteries so you don’t get stuck buying alkaline batteries at the last minute when you need it right away.
 Also, you will need a good energy efficient charger. Consider buying an Energy Star-qualified battery charger so you’ll use less energy during the recharging process.
Please be sure to take a few moments and separate all your recyclables and place them in the recycling cart. Remember, saving natural resources helps the environment and saves the Town money.

Recycle, Join the Pembroke Team!!!

As of November 1, 2011, the Pembroke Recycling Center, located at 158B Hobomock Street, will be open every Saturday from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm only. The Recycling Center is now closed on Sundays.

Pembroke’s new Curbside Single Stream Recycling Program

On May 9, 2011, the Pembroke Board of Selectmen voted to approve the purchase of 64 gallon wheeled carts that will be an integral part of the single-stream curbside recycling program scheduled to take effect on or about July 5, 2011.  The authority to purchase the wheeled carts was given to the Selectmen by the voters at the Special Town Meeting on April 26, 2011. The Selectmen chose the larger 64 gallon wheeled carts primarily due to recommendations by the Massachusetts DEP. The larger carts should provide ample volume for recyclables and will qualify the Town for a DEP grant; which will reduce the overall cost of the carts to the Town.

The 64-gallon carts will be delivered fully assembled and ready to use to each household in Town. They will be permanently marked with a Town seal and a list of items that can and cannot be recycled. On or about July 5, 2011, residents will be able to place the carts at the curb with their trash, on the same day, and at the same time for weekly pickup.

 In an effort to include condominium and apartment building residents in the single-stream curbside recycling program, recycling dumpsters will be placed at condominium and apartment complexes for residents use.

How much every household recycles has a direct impact on the cost of trash disposal in the town.  In order to control the ever increasing costs of handling our towns waste, we ask that each of you do your part.  On the reverse of this letter is a detailed list of what can and can not be put into the new single stream containers.  It is up to all of us to do our share, for Pembroke, for cost control, for the environment.  When we recycle, everyone wins.  We are listening, and we are trying to make it as easy as possible for everyone.    

                                    
  Thank you for your participation                                     
  Pembroke Recycling Committee

Recycling Center Information

The Wilson E. Whittaker Recycling Center
158B Hobomock Street
(mailing address-100 Center St.)
781-293-6453

Hours open:
Saturday........... 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Residents need a free permit on your vehicle.  Apply at the Board of Health office, Room 12, Town Hall, Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. or Monday evenings 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. with a valid vehicle registration showing the Pembroke address of said resident (post office box addresses are invalid as proof of residency).  If a vehicle is leased through a leasing company, or if a resident is new and hasn’t changed the address on the registration, a valid driver’s license will be necessary for proof of residency. Information and what to bring to the Pembroke Recycling Center and there are fees for some items. (pdf)

The recycling center is located a little further up the newly paved road from the old recycling center on Hobomock Street.  Recycling center stickers will be available that day at the new recycling center to Pembroke residents only.  Residents must show proof of Pembroke residency through their drivers’ licenses and registrations to the vehicle on which the sticker will be attached.

The Board of Health announced that should a state, federal or town holiday fall on a Sunday, Wednesday or Saturday, the Wilson E. Whittaker Recycling Center will not be open that day. This also includes snow emergencies.

Mr. Wilson E. Whittaker, 85, of Pembroke died Monday, September 28, 2009 Mr. Whittaker was a long time member of the Board of Health. Memorial donations may be made to the Pembroke Watershed Association, PO Box 368, Pembroke MA 02359.