Get rid of sensitive papers at shredding event

Got boxes of old receipts? A bunch of those check blanks that credit card companies send out? Piles of old medical records? Or just a lot of paper stuff you don’t know how to get rid of? Then start cleaning out all those old files.

Farmington residents have a little over a week to start rounding up all those sensitive documents — old tax records, bank information, check stubs and so on — before the city of Farmington offers a free paper shredding event. It will be held in conjunction with the household hazardous waste drop-off event at the city’s municipal campus off of 195th Street and Pilot Knob Road.

This is the first time the city is offering such a service to residents, said Farmington municipal services coordinator Lena Larson.

“It’s an opportunity for Farmington residents to securely dispose of some of their personal papers that they would be concerned about throwing away,” Larson said.

The city has contracted the company Pioneer Secure Shred, which brings in a mobile shredding vehicle, which is accompanied by a security service representative. The service representative locks each person’s sensitive materials into a secure container. A hydraulic lift on the mobile shredding vehicle raises the container and dumps the materials into a shredding chamber. The shredding vehicle also has a closed circuit video monitoring system that allows people to watch their documents be destroyed.

Because this is the first time the city has offered such a service, Larson said it is hard to know how long the process could take, or, for that matter, how long residents may have to wait in line to get to the shredder. But for people who have been stashing personal papers in boxes and filing cabinets for years, it may be well worth the wait.

“It’s just an added value to the residents of Farmington. It gives them an opportunity to recycle those papers and supports the Dakota County (recycling) master plan,” Larson said. “It benefits the county, it benefits the city and it benefits the residents.”

There is no cost for the shredding event, though it is only open to residents of the city of Farmington. Proof of residency will be required.

Other drop-offs

The drop-off event also gives Farmington residents a chance to get rid of up to four automotive tires, rims on or off. That service, too, is only open to residents who live within city boundaries.

However, the household hazardous waste drop-off is open to all Dakota County residents. People may bring aerosol cans, antifreeze, pesticides, lighter fluid, weed killers and just about any other type of hazardous waste materials to the drop-off site. A full list of accepted materials is available on the city’s web site, www.ci.farmington.mn.us.

The drop-off and shredding events will be held at the Farmington Maintenance Facility, located at 19650 Municipal Dr. Participants are asked to enter the campus from 195th Street, turning onto English Avenue, then taking English Avenue to 197th Street and onto Municipal Drive. The collection and shredding will take place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 10.

Tags: local news, paper shredding