Photo: Chaiel Schaffel/WBZ NewsRadio
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Zoo New England is collecting old holiday lights and extension cords as part of their “Lights for Lions” recycling drive.
These old lights and cords are collected by the zoo and taken to recyclers, where they are stripped of their copper and other metals, and those metals are sold off.
Peter Zampine Jr., Education Manager with the Franklin Park Zoo, said that this is their second year running this drive. The zoo hopes to match last year’s success, when they collected about 1,500 pounds of string lights.
The collected funds will be donated to Lion Landscapes, a conservation organization in Tanzania that protects lions and their habitats. The group buys and installs devices that basically lion scarecrows, designed to scare the creatures away from herders they would otherwise get into conflict with by attacking their cattle.
“Any kind of movement will set off a bright flashing light to scare away any predators," Zampine explained.
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Zampine said there's also an environmental benefit at home.
“It's a local conservation effort because those string lights aren't just rotting away in a landfill somewhere, but it's also making a direct impact halfway across the world in Africa.”
The Lights for Lions recycling drive runs through Feb. 28, 2026. More information can be found here.
WBZ NewsRadio’s Chaiel Schaffel (@CSchaffelWBZ) reports.
