Limington participates in the EcoMaine recycling program. Please read about what can be recycled below.
Curbside
Household solid waste may be disposed of at Curbside Pickup:
Curbside pickup is on Monday or Wednesday depending upon where in Limington you live. (Check with the Town Office or Neighbors for your day)
Please have your trash out be 6:00AM in 30 gallon containers or 50 lb. bag limits.
If you have further questions on Curbside Pickup you may call Mellen at 207-625-7591.
Transfer Station
In order to be allowed to use the Transfer Station, Limington households are required to display a currently authorized “Transfer Station Permit” sticker on their vehicle. Anyone who does not display such a permit will be turned away from the transfer station and prohibited from disposing of materials until such time as they have obtained one from the town. Only Limington residents are permitted to use the Transfer Station. No out-of-town disposal is allowed at this site.
Hours
- Sundays 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
- Wednesdays 12:00 PM - 4:00P M
- Saturdays 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Transfer Station Location
76 Pine Hill Road
Note:
- Transfer Station stickers are required on your vehicle.
- 2024 (Blue) stickers are available at the Town Office for $20.00
Items accepted and rules of the Transfer Station:
- Metals and White Goods
- Automobile and Snowmobile parts (fuel tanks must be removed)
- Construction Debris (excluding masonry products such as bricks, concrete blocks, etc.)
- Demolition Materials (wood, sheetrock, etc.) are restricted to materials produced in Limington and limited to a certain yardage per month. Residents with large remodeling or demo projects shall contract private haulers. Contractors are not allowed to offload at the Transfer Station without written permission from the Select Board or Code Enforcement Officer.
- Wood Waste
- Shingles - $15.00 per cubic yard
- Mercury-Containing Items – i.e. fluorescent bulbs, batteries (see list below for fees)
- Furniture items
- Mattresses & Box springs, Rugs (See fee schedule below)
- Computers, Peripherals & Televisions (at no charge)
- Tires
Items that are NEVER accepted at the Transfer Station:
- Vehicle fuel tanks
- Masonry debris (like bricks, cement blocks, or mortar)
- Paint or driveway sealer of any kind
- Gasoline, kerosene, motor oil, or hydraulic oil
- Any hazardous waste (including any radioactive materials, asbestos, etc.)
- Any pharmaceutical products (for humans or animals)
- Animal remains (in part or whole) or animal waste
- Brush, leaves or grass clippings
Please see this attached hand-out for current fees that are charged at the Transfer Station.
Additional Information
Ecomaine has an app called “ecomaine Recyclopedia” which you can download from the app store or by visiting: https://www.ecomaine.org/what-can-be-recycled/recyclopedia/.
Recycle is now done at the Transfer Station in the Compactor. You do need a Transfer Station Sticker to recycle.
This is single-sort recycling. All materials go into the same bin; no need to separate!
Items to be recycled are:
- All plastics labeled #1-7
- Aseptic milk & juice cartons
- Books
- Boxes
- Cans / Foil
- Cardboard / All boxes
- Empty Aerosol Cans
- Empty Bottles (any color)
- Gift boxes / Gift wrap
- Jars
- Junk mail/phone books
- Magazines/catalogs
- Newspaper
- Pots and Pans
- Shoe Boxes / Cereal Boxes
What Changed?
Instead of separating recyclables by type, simply combine all glass, metal, paper, cardboard, and plastics into one recycling container. It is simpler and now plastics #1-7 are included, too!
- All plastics labeled #1-7
- Aseptic milk and juice cartons
- Cans
- File folders
- Foil
- Gift boxes
- Junk mail/window envelopes
- Magazines/catalogs
- Newspaper
- Phone books
- Pots and pans
- Shopping bags
Is this recycling system better for the environment?
YES. Every ton recycled is one less ton in the waste stream, and national statistics show that single-sort recycling systems result in more recycling.
Why?
Because it is so much easier (no sorting). Studies done in Portland and Lyman showed improved efficiency and less pollution. By eliminating the need for separation, recycling trucks no longer have to idle at the curb while the driver is sorting. That results in less air pollution. In addition to the reduction in air pollution, recycling always means greater conservation of our natural resources, and using recycled materials to make products saves energy. Recycling in Maine saves the equivalent of 167 million gallons of gasoline every year.
Are any items not included in single-sort recycling?
The following items are NOT INCLUDED IN SINGLE-SORT. By Law, they require special handling and disposal:
- Hazardous Waste: (These items include: fuel, anti-freeze, oil-based paints, paint thinners, stains, fertilizers, pesticides, and other chemicals.)
- Universal Waste
- Common products, such as mercury in thermostats.
- Fluorescent bulbs, compact fluorescent lights, televisions, computers, and button-cell batteries.
For more information about Hazardous and Universal Waste, see the ecomaine website at https://www.ecomaine.org/
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is single-sort recycling?
Single-sort recycling system – sometimes called single-stream – allows residents to place all their recyclable materials into just one container. That means your bottles, paper, glass, cardboard, metal, and plastic no longer have to be sorted or separated. It makes recycling more convenient and it takes up much less space in your home.
2. Does everything go in the same box or bag?
Everything recyclable goes in one bag - trash, however, still needs to be separated. But that means each household needs only two containers – one for trash and one for recyclables.
3. We always had to separate recyclable items before — why is it OK to combine them now?
Recyclable items for us. All the recyclables start out together on one conveyor belt and then, as it moves along, special equipment picks out one type of material at a time and sends it along a different track. Separation is done by size, by gravity, by special scanner equipment, by magnets, and so on.
4. It sounds expensive!
The single-sort system costs about $3.7 million and is not something any one of our communities could afford to do alone. But because the equipment is part of a regional approach to dealing with our waste problems, we can afford it as a group and we all benefit from it.
The money for the single-sort system comes from the fees each municipality pays to dispose of its non-recyclable trash and from the income generated by selling processed recycling materials.
5. What other communities are involved? Where is the equipment located?
There are a total of 21 municipalities in Southern Maine that are owners of ecomaine. There are seven more communities that have long-term agreements with ecomaine and there are also businesses with no affiliation that pay for trash services on a per-use basis.
With the increased capacity of single-sort equipment, many more communities can now participate in ecomaine by signing contracts for recycling.
To make a profit from a recycling operation, using full-cost accounting, requires a very heavy volume that individual municipalities in Maine would find impossible or extremely difficult to meet. That’s one reason the ecomaine regional effort makes good sense – even for Portland; another is the avoided expense of each municipality owning recycling balers, front-end loaders, and other equipment necessary for recycling. ecomaine’s regional volume enables it to get top dollar for its recycled materials.
The single-sort equipment – along with the rest of ecomaine - is located in Portland, just off Exit 46 of the Maine Turnpike.
6. This sounds like a lot of money to spend on equipment, just so we can keep our recyclables in one container.
If that were the only benefit, yes, it would be expensive and not worth the price. However, the real benefit comes from an increase in recycling. Because the single-sort system is so easy and convenient, national statistics show that more people begin to recycle - and that those who already recycle will recycle even more items.
An increase in recycling is good for us in three important ways:
A. It’s the right thing to do for our environment and it helps conserve our natural resources.
B. Every pound of recyclables we save from the trash bin is one less pound for which our town has to pay a waste disposal fee.
C. Recyclables that are collected and sent to ecomaine for processing are then sold to manufacturers; that money helps to keep our fees for waste disposal from increasing.
7. Are there any other financial benefits?
Yes. For example, towns with transfer stations can compact recyclables since they don’t have to be separated. By compacting the material, a greater quantity can be squeezed into the same trailer before it’s full and needs to be hauled to ecomaine. That means fewer trips per year and, since haulers charge per trip, less expense for the town.
For municipalities that have curbside pick-up for recyclables, compaction brings the same advantage of fewer trips, but it also saves employee time. Without a single-sort system, employees had to take the bins from the curb and sort them by hand into the truck’s compartments. The job goes a lot faster when you can just dump the whole bin at once.
8. So, will trucks that provide curbside pick-up idle less at each stop?
That’s right. The trucks will save on fuel costs and will pollute less. Because of the new single-sort system, communities that range in size from Portland to Hollis have decided that curbside recycling service is now affordable.
9. What are some of the items we should pull out of the trash and put into the recycling box?
Paper makes up about 75% of all recyclable material sent to ecomaine. That’s because a great deal of paper products can be recycled now, including: cardboard – in fact, all boxes, newspapers, magazines and catalogs, and all books – including paperbacks, hardcover, and phone books. Other recyclable paper products include junk mail, window envelopes, file folders, wrapping paper, shopping bags, and aseptic milk and juice cartons (ones with gable tops and flat tops).
10. What else should we be looking for?
Plastic, metal, and glass - including things like foil, cans, pots and pans, empty aerosol cans, empty bottles, and jars of any color. Plastic recycling has now changed to include anything labeled #1-7 inside the recycling triangle. The only plastics that can not be accepted now are items without a recycling triangle. Even many plastic grocery bags are now recyclable – just look for the recycling triangle on the side or the bottom of the bag.
11. It’s always good to hear that the number of materials which are recyclable is expanding. But that brings up a good point: what should NOT be recycled?
That’s a good question… and it’s important to know the answer because recyclable material is sold according to the consistency of each bale. For example, if bubble-wrap – which is NOT recyclable - gets mixed into the bale of #2 plastic, the price will go down or the buyer may send it back as unusable.
Here are some items that should NOT be included with your recyclables (for various reasons): light bulbs, hypodermic needles or any other sharp object, vinyl siding, bubble wrap, Styrofoam packaging or peanuts, toys, or food.