North Hempstead, NY – Town of North Hempstead Supervisor Judi Bosworth, the Town Board, and the Town’s Solid Waste Management Authority (SWMA) would like to encourage residents to take advantage of several free take back programs to dispose of rechargeable batteries and thermostats that contain mercury. When rechargeable batteries and thermostats are returned to SWMA at Town S.T.O.P. events, there is an expense incurred by the Town to dispose of them properly, therefore residents are encouraged to use alternative drop off sites for these items when convenient.

As of December 2011, it has been against the law for New Yorkers to knowingly dispose of rechargeable batteries in their garbage. Call2Recycle, a not-for-profit arm of the battery manufacturing industry, is a free take-back program for rechargeable batteries. Alkaline batteries, the common household non-rechargeable batteries, can still be disposed of properly along with other waste. Call2Recycle’s kiosks can be found at Lowes and Home Depot stores, where consumers can discard rechargeable batteries at no cost. For a full list of drop-off locations near you, please visit www.Call2Recycle.org/NewYork. Visitors will have the option to enter their zip code to find the closest drop-off.

Likewise, thermostats containing mercury are illegal to discard in regular garbage. The Thermostat Recycling Corporation (TRC) is a non-profit stewardship organization that facilitates and manages the collection and proper disposal of mercury-containing thermostats. To find a drop-off location for mercury thermostats please visit www.Thermostat-Recycle.org and enter your zip code for a location near you.

Both these programs are free and any batteries or thermostats that are returned through this program are both properly dealt with at no cost to taxpayers.

For more information on either program, please call (516) 869-6311.