Politics & Government

City to Launch Food Waste Composting Program

Pilot program is part of city's commitment to sustainability and begins August 2.

The information below comes from the City of Highland Park. 

The City of Highland Park – in partnership with Veolia Environmental Services, the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County (SWALCO), Glad® and Orbis® – will launch a voluntary food waste composting pilot program starting August 2. The food waste composting pilot program is part of the City’s ongoing commitment to sustainability and efforts to divert waste from local landfills. 

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The food waste composting pilot program will be available in the Veolia Thursday collection quadrant (northeast portion of Highland Park), which includes approximately 2,500 eligible households. The pilot program will run from August 2 to November 29, 2012. At the conclusion of the program, the City will evaluate the overall effectiveness and efficiency of the program and make a recommendation to the City Council regarding implementation of a food waste composting program on a Citywide basis. 

The first 125 participating residents will receive a 33-gallon Veolia cart at no charge, an under-sink collection bucket courtesy of Orbis and a box of compostable bags for food scraps courtesy of Glad. Food waste will be collected curbside once per week on Thursday for eligible residents. Collected food waste will be transported to Nu-Earth Organics in Waukegan for composting. Please note that yard waste and food waste may not be intermixed. 

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The total cost of the program is $40 per participating residence for the duration of the pilot program. As an incentive, the City will contribute 50% of the total cost of the program for the first 125 residences in the Thursday quadrant who register. The remaining $20 will be billed directly to the participating residence on the next regular Veolia bill. Refuse stickers are not required for the disposal of food waste. Residents in the Thursday collection quadrant who are interested in participating should contact Veolia directly at (847) 272-4145. 

For more information regarding the food waste composting pilot program, please contact Veolia at (847) 272-4145 or Emily Palm in the City Manager’s Office at (847) 926-1004. 

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