Posted on October 24, 2025
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This holiday season, we’ve partnered with locations across the metro to offer holiday light recycling drop-offs for any old or broken strands of lights you find as you deck the halls.
Keeping lights out of recycling facilities and landfills is as easy as 1-2-3!
- Drop your lights (no bags, please!) in collection boxes at participating locations from Nov. 10, 2025 - Jan. 30, 2026.
- All lights will be processed at our Metro Hazardous Waste Drop-Off in Bondurant before heading to a specialty e-waste recycler.
- Copper, the main material pulled from your holiday lights, will be recycled and used across different industries for electrical wiring, plumbing, construction, and even renewable energy systems.
You make all of this possible by simply dropping your old holiday lights in the collection box. Leave the next steps to us!
Participating Locations
The following sites are participating in the holiday light recycling program:
- Alleman City Hall
- Altoona Public Library
- Blank Park Zoo
- Bondurant Public Library
- Clive Public Library
- East Side
- Des Moines Public Library - South Side
- Des Moines Public Library - North Side
- Des Moines Public Library - Central
- Des Moines Public Works
- Grimes Public Library
- Johnston Public Library
- Mingo Public Library
- Mitchellville Public Library
- Norwalk Public Library
- Polk City Library
- Prairie City Library
- Runnells City Hall
- Urbandale Public Library
- Waukee Public Library
- West Des Moines Public Library
- Windsor Heights City Hall
Holiday lights can also be recycled year-round at Metro Hazardous Waste Drop-Off.
Just remember, holiday lights are not regular recycling, so they don’t belong in your recycling carts.
Accepted Lights
LED, classic, plastic, and glass bulbs as well as net, icicle, and battery-powered lights are accepted. When you drop them in the collection box, lights should be loose and not bagged.