Don’t know what to do with those old or no longer-working strings of holiday lights? Making the switch to energy efficient LED holiday lights? Either way, recycle your old lights!

Recycle Your Holidays™ is a one-of-a-kind statewide holiday light recycling program in Minnesota created by the Recycling Association of Minnesota (RAM). Although the Recycling Association of Minnesota will no longer be operating the Recycle Your Holidays™ program, you can still drop off unwanted light strings at participating locations featuring their own light recycling program during this holiday season.

When RAM and our partners started this collection program seven years ago, few, if any, of these holiday lights were recycled. Now, thanks to collaborative efforts with so many of you, thousands of Minnesotans now realize the value and importance of recycling these lights and additional recycling opportunities now exist statewide.

One of RAM’s roles as a non-profit organization is to identify unfulfilled needs and opportunities within the recycling community and to start up programs initiating and promoting the collection of new materials. As these programs mature and take on a life of their own, RAM is able to step away from some of the frontline collection activities. The ‘Recycle Your Holidays’ program is one of these projects. It is RAM’s intention to assist rather than lead the program at this point, and to serve as a supportive resource to our partner organizations and businesses wishing to continue these recycling efforts to ensure a smooth transition to new a collection process.

Many of the same drop-off locations will still be available, others may be added or closed. We will continue to work with the Clean Energy Research Teams (CERT) and other partners to provide and relay collection location information.

To find the nearest location to you, call your City or County Solid Waste and Recycling Department or check back soon for an updated map with collection locations.

Year round drop-offs include:

Andover City Hall – 763-767-5175
Becker County Courthouse (3rd floor by Zoning Dept.) –
Becker County Transfer Station – 24413 County Hwy 144, Detroit Lakes, MN
Carver County Environmental Center – 952-361-1835
Chisago County Household Hazardous Waste Facility – 651-213-8921
City of Elk River – 13065 Orono Parkway, Elk River, MN 763-635-1073
City of Hopkins – 1010 1st St S, Hopkins, MN 55343 952-935-8474
Coon Rapids Recycling Center – 1831 111th Avenue Coon Rapids, MN 55433 763-767-6485
Hennepin County Recycling Center and Transfer Station 8100 Jefferson Highway, Brooklyn Park, MN 55445
Itasca County Transfer Station & Waste Management – 218-328-5801
PHASE Recycling – 320-425-2246
Pope/Douglas Solid Waste Management Recycling Center – 2115 Jefferson Street, Alexandria, MN 320-763-9340
Ramsey County Household Hazardous Waste Facility – 651-633-3279
Rice County Recycling Center & Landfill – 55091 507-332-6833
Scott County Household Hazardous Waste Facility – 952-496-8652
South Hennepin Recycling and Problem Waste Drop-Off Center 1400 West 96th Street Bloomington, MN 55431
Steele County Waste Management Recycling Center – 507-456-4894
Washington County Environmental Center – 4039 Cottage Grove Drive, Woodbury, MN 651-430-6655
West Central Industries (WCI) – 1300 22nd St. SW, Willmar, MN 320-235-5310
Jobs Plus – 200 16th Ave SE, Waseca, MN 507-883-1230
ProAct, Inc. – 3195 Neil Armstrong Blvd, Eagan, MN 651-289-3142

Source: recycleminnesota.org