We are pleased to report that we are well on our way to a new NexTrex bench for Hopewell – we have diverted 650 pounds of plastic from landfill! However, there is still some confusion about what we can and cannot accept. Please make sure you are aware of the DO’s and DON’Ts to make things easier on our volunteers AND to make sure we are able to continue to offer the program. (New volunteers are welcome!)
The most important rule is that the items be CLEAN and DRY. Remember to also check for receipts, desiccant pouches and crumbs. Here’s a visual to remind you of what we do and don’t accept. NO frozen food bags, NO sealing film (ie top of a dairy container), NO chip bags, NO candy wrappers, NO pet food bags, NO pre-washed salad bags, NO bedding/linen packaging, NO hard plastics, NO compostable plastics, NO metallic or paper mailing pouches, NO archival magazine sleeves, NO bags marked with a #5 or #7.
What CAN we accept? Examples of items include case wrap (found around bottled water, paper products, etc.), cereal box liner bags, bread bags, bubble wrap, all-plastic mailer pouches, newspaper sleeves, dry cleaning bags, #4 soft bendable foam, pellet bags, pallet wrap, and ice bags (NO staples). Helpful hint: it is much easier for volunteers if you take one of your larger bags and put your smaller items inside it!
As a general rule, if the plastic is STRETCHY, we can take it – if it CRUNCHES, we cannot. But the rules can be confusing – so we reached out to a representative at NexTrex. As one example, she explained even though cereal bags are not “stretchy”, NexTrex IS still able to recycle them, but they cannot recycle cracker bags. This is because of a preservative used in many cracker bags that is never found in cereal bags. When in doubt, throw it out!
We are also looking for volunteers to help with our TREX program – picking up at Borough Hall; packing up and weighing, and driving to Wegmans. You don’t have to do all 3 steps – only what works for you. Shifts of 2-4 weeks are available. Please email heidi.wilenius@hopewellboro-nj.us to learn more or to volunteer. Volunteers are what keep programs like this running!
The Borough Hall NexTrex recycling bins are open for anyone in the Hopewell area, there is no residency requirement. As long as you are following the rules, we welcome your plastic film recycling. Borough Hall is open Mon-Fri 8:30-4:30, and at other times when public meetings are scheduled. Please see the Borough Calendar for the meeting schedule. If you are a commerical business and have a large drop off, please email Heidi (above) to make arrangements.
And as a reminder, Mercer County now recycles #1, #2, AND #5 plastics! So when it comes to your HARD plastics, a lot of them can be recycled curbside — look for the numbers! And as always — ALL recycling should be CLEAN. Dirty containers contaminate the recycling stream — too much can cause large batches to be thrown away. So please always RINSE your recycling well. Have more questions about recycling? Check out https://hopewellvalleygreenteam.org/recycling/recycling-tips/. In addition, Pennington Borough will be holding a free zoom seminar on how to recycle, we will share that date as soon as we have it. It will be a great way to get your local recycling questions answered!
| Recycling Other Materials – Hopewell Valley Green Team Recycling Other Materials Hopewell Valley Green Team’s 2025 recycling flyer is available here (click to open).. An array of old and new electronics are accepted by Recycling Services at Staples stores including computers, monitors, printers (and ink/toner cartridges), fax machines, shredders, phones, CD/DVD/Blu-ray discs & players, gaming consoles & controllers, stereo receivers, and much more. hopewellvalleygreenteam.org |
