Greenhouse Plastic Recycling Fact Sheet
Eligibility:
All Maine greenhouses, high tunnels, and plastic covered ag structures.
Registration:
Registration for 2021 will open on May 10. Participants must pre-register online. For assistance with registration, please contact the Waldo County Extension office at 207.342.5971.
No Fee:
Funding is provided by a State of Maine DEP Waste Diversion grant. Affiliated partners generously donating additional time and resources include MOFGA, USDA NRCS – Maine, and the Maine Resource Recovery Association.
Material collected:
Low-density polyethylene #4 (LDPE #4) clear plastic used to cover greenhouses, high tunnels, hoop houses, and other agricultural structures. The film is normally 5-6 mil thick. It must be relatively clean and dry. The program will also accept white overwintering plastic bundled separately from clear plastic.
Material not collected:
Plastic saturated with water, ice or snow at the time of drop-off. Dirty plastic that has been repurposed, i.e., used for ground tarping or solarization. Certain specialty covers, i.e., reinforced woven film, colored films, solar bubble wrap, polycarbonate panels, etc. Non-structural mulch films, silage wrap, and boat wrap.
Program dates:
2021 collection will begin May 17. Most sites will be accepting pre-registered bundles through December 17. Please check the dates and hours of operation for individual sites.
Drop-off sites:
A network of convenient sites has been developed throughout Maine. Please check each site for days and hours of operation. Please see our interactive online map for locations and site-specific information.
Larger operations may qualify for on-site collection.
Click on image or caption to view and download PDFs:


Contact
For more information, contact program manager Matt Wallhead at agplasticrecycling@maine.edu or 207.581.2949.
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