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alliance for a greener south loop, Chicago, compost, Earth, loop, recycle, South Loop, Waste Management
About a month ago, my South Loop neighborhood condo building started a composting program and my trash has not smelled since. Composting may seem like a foreign idea, especially in the city, but it’s really quite simple! Our program is set up through Waste Management and they collect our compost once a week. Once you have a collection set up, all you have to do is get a small bin to keep in your home for compostable materials, line it with a compostable bag, and empty your bin every 3-5 days in your larger collection bin.
Does your building or work compost? Spread the news to the neighborhood and let us know!
After extensive research our household purchased the Full Circle Fresh Air Kitchen Compost Collector from Amazon. It was $30. With that we ordered a box of 25 Full Circle Renew Compostable Waste Bags for $10. The bags are only 2.5 gallons, so as you can imagine this easily fits in our kitchen, we keep ours next to our recycling bag and garbage can. The only trick is to empty the container every 3-5 days. Because the bags are also compostable, they start to break down as soon as an item is placed in them. You don’t want a bag with a hole in it! If you tend to get busy or forgetful I would suggest designing a system to remind yourself to bring the composting down. If your bag does get a hole in it you can put it in a paper bag, which is also compostable.
If you are recycling and composting as much as you can at home, you will be surprised to see how little actual trash you will accumulate! Since recycling is rinsed and compost is taken out so frequently your trash may never be smelly again!
Below are charts to remind you of what can be composted and what can be recycled.
Please be careful with what you recycle and what you compost! Waste Management explains: “One dirty product, or one with food waste still in it, can contaminate an entire bale, containing thousands of pounds of collected plastics. This can cause thousands of recyclable items to go to a landfill instead of being recycled.” They also note that recycling must never be placed in a plastic bag or it will be automatically sent to the trash.
NOTE: Some of the items listed below are not recommended for at home compost piles because they will be very smelly as they breakdown. These lists were created from items which are accepted by Waste Management.
Compostable Items: Anything that is Wholly Organic, Nothing that was Chemically Produced
*might be recyclable
Acceptable |
Unacceptable |
Fruits/vegetables |
*Plastic food packaging/wrap |
Meat, poultry |
Latex & plastic gloves |
Bakery items & ingredients |
*Coated & plastic take-out containers/cups |
Eggs & paper egg cartons |
*Plastic bags |
Plants, cut flowers, potting soil |
*Milk & juice cartons |
Coffee grounds, filters, tea bags |
Aerosol cans |
Paper products (napkins & paper towels) |
Twist ties, rubber bands, wire |
Compostable packaging |
Grease from cooking |
Hair (human & animal) |
Kitty litter/feces |
Recyclable Items: Non Organic Materials, Rinse All Food off First
Metal |
Paper/Cardboard |
Glass |
Plastic |
Aluminum cans |
Corrugated cardboard |
Clear, brown, or green glass |
Look for the following numbers in the symbol |
Aluminum foil/bakeware |
Magazines |
Unacceptable glass |
Unacceptable Plastic |
Steel/tin cans |
Office papers |
Heat-resistant glass/Pyrex |
Items coded 6 PS |
Unacceptable Metal |
Newspapers |
Broken glass |
|
Metal caps/lids |
Paperboard |
Mirror/window glass |
|
Paper/cardboard milk & juice cartons |
Crystal |
||
Mixed paper/unsolicited direct mail |
Additional Recycling: These items can be brought to a store for recycling
Batteries/Bulbs |
Electronics Can be brought to a store like Best Buy |
Car batteries Usually can be exchanged with your battery store |
Computers (CPUs, monitors, peripherals, keyboards) |
The following can be brought to most hardware stores i.e. Ace on State St |
Office equipment (photocopier, printer, fax) |
Household and button batteries |
Televisions |
Rechargable batteries |
Consumer electronics (DVD player, stereo, phone) |
Incandecent & LED lights |
Cell phones |
Compact florescent bulbs |
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