Time to shred old documents

Process protects from identity theft

By: Joseph Harvie
   Residents with piles of old documents such as bills, tax returns, credit statements, now have an environmentally safe way to dispose of them without worrying about the danger of identity theft.
   The Middlesex County Division of Solid Waste Management is hosting a paper-shredding event from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nov. 4 at the Senior Center located in the Municipal Complex on Route 522.
   Richard Hills, head of the county division, said that people can bring their paper items, such as old checks and checkbooks, receipts and old files to the Senior Center and actually watch it get shredded.
   "The truck is equipped with a closed circuit TV, so you can see the paper get shredded and then a ram comes and pushes it to the back of the truck," Mr. Hills said. "There are also windows in the back of the truck so you can watch the paper fill the truck."
   However, people cannot bring newspapers, magazines or books to the shredding, Mr. Hills said.
   The truck can hold 9,000 pounds of shredded paper, Mr. Hills said.
   The county started the program last year when it went into the adult retirement communities in Monroe, shredding and recycling documents there.
   "The highest amount of kudos we received from the seniors about the program was that they never got rid of the items because they were concerned about identity theft," Mr. Hills said.
   The county has since held 16 events that have been open to the public in various municipalities in the county including East Brunswick, South Plainfield and Old Bridge, Mr. Hills said.
   So far the county has collected 41,400 pounds of paper through the events, Mr. Hills said.
   Once collected it is brought to a recycling facility where it is bundled into 10,000-pound bails and shipped to paper companies to be recycled and used for new products.
   The county will also hold its last household hazardous waste collection from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 19 at Middlesex County College on Woodbridge Avenue in Edison.
   Mr. Hills said county residents can bring items such as old paint, lawn chemicals, pesticides, pool chemicals and mercury thermometers so they can be properly recycled or disposed of.