Recycling & Solid Waste Committee

Trash and recycling is picked up on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.  Click here for the Tuesday collection schedule.  Click here for the Wednesday collection schedule.
Click here for the list of streets being picked up from on each scheduled day. 

Is it recyclable?  Search here:
* Recyclopedia (look up a specific item and discover whether it is recyclable or trash)
* DEP's Beyond the Bin (learn where Shutesbury residents can properly dispose of mattresses, textiles, batteries, household hazardous waste, and bulky waste)
* Recycling For Kids (has a wealth of recycling information geared towards kids)

Trash Bag Policy.   Trash bag distribution schedule 2025.
Additional 10-packs can be purchased for $20 at the Leverett Coop and at the Spear Library and are available at Town Hall outside the bag distribution period.

Bulky Waste:  take your bulky waste items to the Leverett Transfer Station
* How to get stickers to the Leverett Transfer Station (LTS).
* Leverett Transfer Station hours are posted on their website here.
* New LST price list is here (same prices as Leverett residents pay).

Recycling and trash figures for Fiscal Year 2025
(July 2024 through June 2025)

Shutesbury residents collected 150.77 tons of recyclable materials in FY 2025 — 73.52 tons of bottles & containers and 77.25 tons of paper.

Shutesbury residents discarded 325.03 tons of trash in FY 2025.

Total waste stream = recycled materials + trash = 475.80 tons.

Recycled materials as percent of total waste stream = 31.69% (a decrease of 1.80% from FY 2024).

By recycling those 150.77 tons of material, Shutesbury residents saved the Town $14,323.15 — money we didn't have to spend in trash disposal fees in FY 2025!

For five of the past 10 years, Shutesbury’s recycling has slightly increased towards our goal of a 40% recycling rate.

Alert —  
Fluorescent bulbs will no longer be collected in Town Hall.  Thermometers, thermostats, rechargeable batteries of all sizes, button batteries, and ballasts are still being collected at Town Hall.  Receptacles are downstairs in the hallway across from the stairway.

Do not bring Alkaline batteries to Town Hall for disposal.  Alkaline batteries go in the trash.

Hadley Lowe's accepts fluorescent bulbs and tube lights up to 6' in length.  Home Depot no longer accepts fluorescent-tube bulbs, only compact bulbs. 
 

Mattresses & box springs
Landfills and incinerators in Massachusetts do not accept mattresses and box springs.  Shutesbury residents will no longer be able to take these items to the Leverett Transfer Station.

Shutesbury residents can drop off all types of mattresses and box springs at the Wendell Transfer Station at 314 New Salem Road in Wendell for $35 per item.  The station is open Tuesdays 12:00 to 6:00 and Saturdays 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.  If you have questions, call Ray Stone, the Wendell Transfer Station Supervisor, at 1-978-544-7287. 

Many thanks to the good folks at the Franklin County Solid Waste Management District for setting this recycling program up and allowing Shutesbury residents to participate!

Textile Collection at the Highway Department
As of November 2022, all textiles are banned from trash disposal sites in Massachusetts, so these items need to be recycled.  Shutesbury is partnering with CMRK, a company that collects textiles andd other items at no cost — and will pay Shutesbury $0.07 per pound for these items.  You will see the big blue textile collection bin just inside the Highway Department yard on Leverett Road.

This arrangement with CMRK will help us keep textiles and other items out of the waste stream, help us pass on things we no longer need, and even make a few dollars for our town.

Lists of acceptable and non-acceptable textile items can be found here.

What REALLY happens to your recycling?  Take a look behind the (recycling) curtain at Recycle Smart.

Check out Recycle Smart's monthly newsletter for answers to the top recycling questions of 2021!

How much stuff do Americans throw away?  Check out U.S.PIRG's look at trends in waste over the past three years — and click on the arrows for full effect of the dynamic graphics!
 

 Want to reduce your stash of paper grocery bags?
 Take them to the Amherst Survival Center so they can be re-used in food distribution!
 

Take A Recycling Quiz