Recycling consumer goods, food scraps and yard waste is an important part of reducing waste and preserving our natural environment. Recycling reduces the consumption of raw materials by reusing materials that have already been processed. It saves the energy and water that would be used to process these materials and it decreases pollution and greenhouse gasses from landfills. Recycling can be done at home and at your workplace. Be an advocate to help your friends, relatives, place of worship, school, teams and clubs set up recycling processes. Don’t be afraid to ask restaurants and stores that you patronize if they recycle and let them know it is important to you.
The first steps before your recycle are to rethink, refuse, reduce and reuse. Be a thoughtful consumer, and find new ways to to consume less. Recycling should be the last resort.
Before buying anything, ask yourself:
- Do I really need this item? Is it worth the cost to the environment?
- Could I borrow it, rent it, or buy it secondhand?
- Is it made from renewable or nonrenewable resources?
- Can it be reused or recycled? Will it decompose? How will I dispose of it?
- Can it be maintained and repaired?
- Is the item packaged in an earth-friendly way?
- Did you bring your reusable shopping bags with you?
- Check out this great video, The Majestic Plastic Bag
RECYCLING – DO IT RIGHT
It’s very important to correctly follow the Village of Wilmette and LRS, our current waste management service, guidelines for recycling. It’s important to not put contaminated items in the bins to assure the success of recycling various types of plastic. Below are some tips for how to correctly place items in your curbside recycling bin:
Top Recycling Tips for Wilmette (and Beyond)
- Plastic bags – Never put recyclables in plastic bags! (Items can be packed loosely in paper bags.) Recycle empty plastic bags in grocery store collection bins.
- “If you can smash it, trash it” – No soft plastic in curbside bins. Put soft plastic, including mesh produce bags, mailing envelopes, and bubble wrap in grocery store collection bins. Thin film plastic must be “stretchable.”
- Size – Items, Including paper, must be larger than about 2” square. No shredded paper. (Small items fall through machinery.)
- Lids – Always recycle bottles, tubs, jugs and jars with lids on. No coffee cup lids.
- Color – Black bottoms of take out containers are not recyclable. Clear tops of takeout containers are.
- Aluminum foil – Rinse and create a large ball with multiple smaller pieces.
- Rinsing – Items should be empty and rinsed. No need to fully clean.
- Paper coffee cups and sleeves – Recyclable (empty). No lids or straws.
- Aerosols – Recyclable, if fully empty, in curbside bin. If full, dispose of in hazardous waste collection.
- Styrofoam – Not recyclable in curbside bin. Can be taken to Abt or Mount Prospect.
- Textiles – Donate in any condition at Goodwill, Salvation Army, or clothing drop off bins. Not recyclable in curbside bin.
- Pill bottles – Recyclable (empty) in curbside bin.
- Batteries – Not recyclable in curbside bin.
- Wine corks – Recyclable at Good Grapes in Winnetka or search for additional outlets.
- Don’t crush plastic bottles or flatten cans.
- Plastic #1 and #2 – Mostly recyclable.
- Plastic #6 and #7 – Not recyclable. (Solo cups and many clear plastic cups.)
- Additional recycling information – Available on this recorded webinar and on the SWANCC website.
A printable PDF of this list is available HERE
SPECIAL RECYCLING COLLECTIONS
Some items cannot be placed in the curbside bin. Review what can be recycled in our community.
- Wilmette Public Works offers year-round electronics recycling drop off. Click here for location and other details, including a list of goods that are accepted, additional drop off sites for Cook County residents and instructions for larger items.
- Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County (SWANCC) holds one-day drop-off events. Events sites will be posted on the SWANCC website in April of each year.
- Go Green Wilmette and the Village of Wilmette offer block Styrofoam recycling during the year-end holiday season. Details for collections will be posted on Go Green Wilmette’s website by mid-December.
- Styrofoam can also be taken by individual residents to Abt Electronics, or to Mount Prospect Public Works, who recently added a Styrofoam densifier available to all Illinois residents.
COMPOSTING
Composting food scraps and yard waste saves energy, reduces waste, helps grow your garden and saves money. There are three ways to compost in Wilmette:
- Compost at home
- Arrange for compost pick up at Collective Resource or Wastenot Compost
- Use the LRS curbside yard waste program, which hold yard waste and food scraps
RESOURCES
- Solid Waste Agency of Cook County
- Village of Wilmette’s Refuse, Recycling & Yard Waste Program
- The Story of Stuff
- Be a Mindful Consumer
- How to Compost
