Massachusetts Utility Coalition Offers Appliance Recycling Program

A Massachusetts appliance recycling coalition is offering rebates to residential electric customers to recycle their old refrigerators or freezers.

Mass Save, an initiative sponsored primarily by Massachusetts’ gas and electric utilities, operates a year-round appliance recycling program, involving a free pickup of refrigerators and freezers and a $50 payment. The enhanced $100 offer is good through Feb. 15, according to a news release.

The program encourages customers to reduce their energy use through recycling the appliances, which can save up to $150 a year, the group said. Refrigerators and freezers must be in working order, clean and empty, with an inside measurement of between 10 and 30 cubic feet. The group will accept a maximum of two units per household per calendar year.

After pickup, Mass Save will transport the appliances to an appliance recycling facility in Franklin, Mass. After hazardous materials are disposed of, about 95 percent of the appliance’s components are recycled for reuse in other products.

The Mass Save sponsors – Cape Light Compact, National Grid, NSTAR Electric, Unitil and Western Massachusetts Electric Co. – work closely with the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources to provide a wide range of services.