It’s that time of year again: Spring cleaning time.
The weather warms up, the windows get opened – and, suddenly, all that stuff that’s been sitting in the garage, attic, or closet since 2012 starts looking a lot less necessary.
Fortunately, Guilford County residents will have not one but two opportunities over the next couple of weekends to get rid of hard-to-dispose-of items the right way.
The City of Greensboro and Guilford County are both hosting large recycling events in April – each offering slightly different options for residents looking to do some spring cleaning.
The first event is coming up quickly.
The City of Greensboro will hold its Recycle Rodeo from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday, April 18, at Evangel Fellowship Church of God at 2207 E. Cone Blvd. The event is free and open to all Greensboro and Guilford County residents, though business waste won’t be accepted.
The city’s event focuses on items that can be difficult to dispose of through regular trash collection.
Among the items residents can bring:
- Paper for shredding – limited to sensitive documents, with a five-box maximum per vehicle and shredding available on a first-come, first-served basis.
- Household hazardous waste – including batteries, paints, cleaners, pesticides, fertilizer, gasoline, and similar materials.
- Electronic waste – such as phones, computers, hard drives, monitors and televisions
- Styrofoam – including packaging foam, egg cartons, takeout containers, cups, coolers and plates, as long as it’s free of tape or labels
City officials note that all items collected will be recycled or disposed of safely and properly.
The cleverly named “Recycle Rodeo” is part of a broader effort tied to state requirements. Under North Carolina law, local governments are required to provide programs for collecting items banned from landfill disposal, including appliances, electronics and scrap tires. Those items are then sent to state-regulated recyclers for proper handling.
For residents who miss the April 18 event, there are still other options.
Guilford County operates a year-round Scrap Tire and White Goods Collection Facility at 2138 Bishop Rd., open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., except on certain holidays.
The county also hosts a series of special Saturday recycling events – and the next one is now right around the corner.
Guilford County’s Spring Recycling Event will take place from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday, April 25, at Eastern Guilford Middle School. Set your GPS to 435 Peeden Drive in Gibsonville.
Like the city’s event, it’s free and open to all Guilford County residents, and business waste will not be accepted.
The county’s event is a drive-through setup, allowing residents to remain in their vehicles while staff and volunteers unload items at designated stations.
And the list of accepted items is quite extensive.
Residents can bring:
- Appliances – including dishwashers, refrigerators, air conditioners, dehumidifiers, grills, washers, dryers, hot water heaters and push mowers (no fuel allowed).
- Electronics – including computers, monitors, televisions, printers, keyboards, wires, video game consoles, electronic toys, vacuum cleaners, DVD and VHS players and cell phones (batteries will not be accepted).
- Tires – up to 50 passenger tires or 10 heavy truck tires per vehicle (large equipment tires are not accepted).
- Foam, plastic bags and cardboard – clean plastic bags and flattened cardboard boxes (no foam packing peanuts).
- Personal documents for shredding – secure shredding available for up to five file boxes per vehicle.
In addition to recycling, the county event includes two additional components.
The Guilford County Sheriff’s Office will host a Medication Take-Back station, allowing residents to safely dispose of unwanted or expired medications. Accepted items include prescriptions, over-the-counter medications, loose pills, creams and vitamins. Needles and sharps can also be dropped off if properly capped and placed in small containers.
Liquids, however, won’t be accepted.
There will also be a food drive hosted by A Simple Gesture, with donations going to local food pantries.
Items accepted for donation include:
- Canned goods such as tuna, vegetables, beans, fruit, soups, chili and tomato sauce.
- Boxed and bagged foods like cereal, oatmeal, macaroni and cheese, rice and beans.
- Snacks including crackers, granola bars, applesauce and juice boxes
- Baby formula, peanut butter, jelly and pasta sauce
Glass jars will not be accepted.
County officials note that any electronics collected that may store personal data are sent to state-regulated recyclers that provide certified data destruction.
Here’s one important limitation: Household hazardous waste items such as batteries, fuels and light bulbs will not be accepted at the county’s April 25 event. Those can instead be taken to the Household Hazardous Waste Collection Center at 2750 Patterson St. in Greensboro, which is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Taken together, the two events offer residents a pretty complete menu of disposal options. The city’s Recycle Rodeo leans more heavily into hazardous household materials and foam recycling, while the county’s event expands into appliances, tires, medication disposal and food donations.
