City Tests Electronics Recycling Program

Corrected

When a new state law goes into effect next year, Naperville residents will no longer be able to put out electronics with the trash.

In advance of that law, the city of Naperville is offering electronics recycling to residents on a trial basis for the next year beginning May 1. The city is working in cooperation with DuPage County and a recycling firm the county has hired to collect items.

Since the electronics recycling is a countywide initiative, the city will accept items from residents outside of Naperville but who live in DuPage County, said Beth Lang, Department of Public Works strategic services manager.

Naperville residents who reside in Will County and DuPage counties  will be able to call for electronics pick-up through a new program that Will County has implemented, Lang said. To participate in that program, residents must have a front door and ground-floor access.

For the city’s program, electronics may be dropped off at the city’s recycling center on Fort Hill Drive on Tuesdays and Thursdays during its hours of operation.

Because the city is expecting a strong participation in the program, it is asking residents north of 75th Street to drop off electronics on Tuesdays and south of 75th on Thursdays. Regular recycling may be dropped off as usual on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. The center is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

“This is a new service, and there is no data available to anticipate demand,” Lang said in an e-mail. “If the program hours and space dedicated for the collection of electronics cannot meet demand and/or greatly disrupts the recycling operation for which it was originally intended, the city may be forced to discontinue the program and explore alternative methods to provide this type of service.”

The project is county-supported and is being implemented at no cost to the city, other than the staff time required to manage the program and the drop-off site, Lang said.

State legislation prohibits the deposit of electronics in landfills beginning Jan. 1, 2012. Once the law is in place, the city’s waste hauler Allied Waste will no longer pick up any electronics left curbside with the exception of those items classified as white goods, such as refrigerators and ovens, according to a city of Naperville news release.

Once dropped off at the recycling center, the items will be housed in a secure location within the Public Works facility, according to the city. DuPage County has contracted with Creative Recycling Services, which will then collect the items.

The city is not responsible for items once they have been dropped off for recycling.

For security reasons, the city is reminding residents who may recycle electronics to make sure that computer hard drives are cleaned before dropping them off for recycling. Creative Recycling Services will take steps to maintain data security. 

“Depending on age and condition, some items may be repurposed,” Lang said. “Otherwise, they are dismantled and the recovered materials are used in the manufacture of new products.”

Items that will be accepted include:

• Personal computers
• Laptops
• All-in-ones
• Monitors
• Televisions
• Large peripherals
• Copiers
• Computer cables
• Keyboards
• Mice
• Fax machines
• VCR and DVD players
• Video game consoles.

For more information on Creative Recycling Services data security policy, visit the website.

Recycling program information can be found online at the city’s website. 

The Public Works Service Center Recycling Drop-Off Center is at 180 Fort Hill Drive. Hours are from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

Correction: Naperville residents living in DuPage and Will counties  are able to participate in the Will County recycling program. We regret the error.