Planet Aid is pleased to partner with the city of Methuen to expand home pickup services throughout Massachusetts (Press Release)
For release: Feb. 17, 2025
Methuen is partnering with the non-profit Planet Aid Inc. to launch the expansion of textile recycling in the City with a curbside collection of used clothing, footwear, and fabrics.
Mayor David P. Beauregard Jr. announced the program is ready to start in March for Methuen residents. By going on the Planet Aid link (www.planetaid.org/lp-home-donation-pickup) at the City website or calling (508)893-0644, residents can schedule a pickup for the first and third Saturdays of each month.
The first day for scheduled pickups by Planet Aid will be Saturday, March 1st. Residents requesting pickup of their used textiles should schedule at least two days in advance. Material should be deposited curbside in plastic bags by 7 a.m. Saturday morning of pickup day for collection Planet Aid trucks.
Textiles and other items that can be collected by Planet Aid are:
• Clothing – men’s, women’s and children’s;
• Coats and jackets;
• Shoes & sneakers, purses, hats, belts and ties;
• Backpacks;
• Sleeping bags, bedding, towels and sleeping bags;
• Small toys and stuffed animals;
• DVDs (but no other electronic devices or appliances)
Responding to capacity constraints in solid waste management facilities, Massachusetts set a goal earlier this decade of 30% waste reduction by 2030. In November 2022, the Commonwealth mandated the recycling of textile materials and banned textile disposal at landfills and waste incinerators.
Methuen has been doing its part to reduce its trash tonnage. Since 2022 with the introduction of trash limits through the carts program and changes in bulky waste collection, Methuen’s trash tonnage has been reduced by 25% from more than 20,000 tons to just over 15,000 tons in 2024.
“This textile curbside collection program is part of our continuing effort to reduce our City trash tonnage and save Methuen taxpayers money,” said Mayor Beauregard. “It makes economic and environmental sense to maximize the amount of materials we can take out of our waste stream and divert into recycling and reuse programs.”
The textile collection will be at no cost to the City and no fees will be charged to resident households. In fact, the program will be a revenue generator for the City. Under the partnership memorandum of agreement with Planet Aid, the City will receive 9 cents per pound total of materials collected.
Planet Aid is a non-profit organization with a mission of driving environmental change through clothes recycling and textile reuse. Materials the organization collects are donated for reuse throughout the world. Since placing clothing collection bins in 1997, Planet Aid has prevented close to two billion pounds of used clothing and shoes from entering the waste stream.
According to MassDEP, Massachusetts residents and businesses dispose of approximately 230,000 tons of textiles annually. The 2022 Massachusetts waste characterization data indicates that 5 percent of the waste in our trash is made up of textiles, including clothing, curtains, towels, and other fabrics.
For more information, check out the Trash & Recycling page at www.cityofmethuen.gov
Staff contact for information:
Joseph Cosgrove, Environmental Planner & Energy Manager
Tel: (978)983-8563