Do you, like my husband, have boxes of documents you no longer need? He refuses to listen to me about what we need to keep and what we can shred. If you wonder the same thing, check out these guidelines from USA.gov, which says you can get rid of bank statements after 1 year, credit card statements when they are paid, and pay stubs after reconciling with W-2 after 3 years.
Then gather anything you can throw away and head to Montclair ShredFest tomorrow, Saturday, May 17 between 10 am – 2 pm. You’ll enjoy the peace of mind from seeing your confidential documents shredded, while boosting recycling and saving money and energy.
According to Gray Russell, the Sustainability Officer at Montclair’s Department of Environmental Affairs, Montclair’s recyclable paper is a valuable commodity, earning us as much as $65 per ton. But if thrown out as garbage, the same paper costs us over $85 per ton to burn at the Essex County Incinerator. Paying $85 to burn something worth $100 means we are wasting $150 per ton; as much as 5,000 tons of recyclable paper is thrown out every year in Montclair, so when we do the math, we’re actually burning almost a million dollars of our own money! Plus, recycling not only saves money, it saves energy. Manufacturing products out of recycled materials requires much less energy than making products from virgin materials. Wasting energy emits unnecessary greenhouse gasses which contribute to climate change; this event will help you shrink your carbon footprint!
A paper-shredding truck will be provided free of charge by Montclair’s recycling vendor, Green Sky Industries. Residents can drive in and will be helped to unload their personal files. A closed circuit video camera mounted inside the truck will display the paper being shredded, and residents will be able to watch as it happens.
Montclair ShredFest
Saturday, May 17 between 10 am – 2 pm.
Community Services Yard, 219 North Fullerton Avenue, Montclair, NJ, 07042
The event is hosted by the Montclair office of Environmental Affairs and it is free for all township residents.
For further information, contact the office of Environmental Affairs at (973) 509-5721, or email.
Note: confidential paper documents only. Regular paper recycling is collected curbside, or can be dropped off at the adjacent Recycling Center in the DCS Yard. Don’t worry about paper clips, staples, or envelope windows; clear scotch tape is acceptable, but not masking or duct tape.