Chicago recycling education goes “back to basics”

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To address its declining recycling rate since Chicago introduced its “Go Bagless” recycling program Jan. 1, 2016, the city has announced a “back-to-basics” recycling campaign.

According to an article in the Chicago Sun Times, the city is launching a “back-to-basics” campaign in an attempt to increase its 4.5 percent recycling rate on the southeast side and 9 percent citywide rate since implementing its “Go Bagless” program, which urges residents to place unbagged recyclables in their blue recycling carts.

When the “Go Bagless” initiative was launched, the Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation said plastic bags hinder the recycling process by not allowing haulers to see if nonrecyclable materials are in the blue cart, contaminating the stream of otherwise good recycling material and damaging the equipment at sorting facilities.

The “back-to-basics” program will begin in Ward 7 and could be expanded citywide if successful. Houston-based Waste Management will ask the 1,700 homeowners it serves in the ward to recycle only three categories of items: paper, aluminum and plastic, the Chicago Sun Times reports.

A “Dear homeowner” letter will introduce the approach to residents of Ward 7, while a March 9, 2017, town hall meeting hosted by Streets and Sanitation Commissioner Charles Williams, Waste Management officials and the local ward superintendent will help to reinforce the message, the newspaper reports.

A new system for tagging carts also will be introduced. With this system, the city hopes to better explain which prohibited items were included in the carts, prompting Waste Management crews to bypass those carts in favor of city pickups, making Chicago taxpayers pay twice, according to the Chicago Sun Times.

Door hangers will be left with homeowners who have the most contaminated carts, the newspaper reports, and, in some cases, people will knock on doors to talk with homeowners about their recycling habits.