CCED in Action over the Holidays!

Holiday Lighting Collection Project

Annually, the CCED holds the Holiday Lighting Collection Project. Boxes and signage are set up throughout the county from the beginning of December to the beginning of January to collect old, broken or non-LED holiday string lights. Residents are encouraged to switch to LED holiday lights as they use 90% less energy, are safer as they produce little to no heat, have a lifespan of thousands of hours rather than hundreds, and emit less carbon overall. The energy districts also encourage residents to locally purchase new LED lighting in order to retain dollars in communities. After the collection, the lights are brought to Clayton County’s Elkader Transfer Station on High Street. The Clayton County Board of Supervisors are generously covering the cost of transporting the material to the Winneshiek County Recycling Center. This recycling process is completed by separating the insulating plastic surrounding the valuable copper, brass, and glass. The byproducts are then used to make other objects like new wire, pipes, or pulverized into “fluff” which can be mixed with topsoil for landfill filtration.

Again this year, the CCED collection lead to the recycling of hundreds and hundreds of pounds of energy hogging holiday lights!

Free LED Light Bulbs to Clayton County Residents in Need

Another fulfilling project over the holiday season included getting LED light bulbs into the homes of Clayton County residents. The Holiday LED Giveaway successfully put LED bulbs in:

35 households in Strawberry Point
150 households in Guttenberg
80 members’ households of Shepard of the Hills

Proper handouts were given out with these to encourage the residents to install the bulbs ASAP and switch out incandescents/CFLs. The LEDs last 13 years, while incandescents only last one on average, and will save the county $417,500 in energy costs while also reducing our carbon footprint by 4,200 metric tons!