OSF HealthCare Saint Paul and OSF HealthCare Saint Elizabeth Medical Center are pleased to be drop off locations for your non-working Christmas lights this year. In 2018 OSF HealthCare held a campaign among five hospitals to keep non-working Christmas lights out of the landfill and it was wildly successful, resulting in diverting one-and-a-half tons from the waste stream.
It is estimated household waste increases by 25 percent between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, adding an extra six tons of trash to landfills nationwide.
Steve Looney, Western Region Director of Facilities Operations for OSF HealthCare, had predicted last year’s unwanted Christmas light drive would collect 500 pounds. The final collection total was slightly more than 3,000 pounds of broken lights. “Obviously, area residents found this a much-needed service and I’m just thrilled we could play a role in diverting so much waste from local landfills,” said Looney.
Eagle Recycling in Galva partnered to accept the lights which can be stripped down to raw materials including plastic, glass, and copper which can be reused to make new products.
Drop-off boxes are located in the main lobbies of OSF Saint Paul Medical Center, 1401 E. 11th Street, Mendota, IL and OSF Saint Elizabeth Medical Center, 1100 Norris Drive, Ottawa, IL. Any unwanted lights can be dropped off now through January 10, 2020.