Dumpster Rental in Downers Grove, IL

Downers Grove Recycling, Special Waste, and Other Facts

Pierce Downer and Downers Grove Quick Facts

In the 1800s the village of Downers Grove was founded by farmer Peirce Downer and other settlers from New York, Vermont, and the Northeast United States. Downers Grove is now a suburb of Chicago southwest of the city. The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad later accelerated the development of the village.

The Recycling Extravaganza

The purpose of recycling is to remove waste from landfills. Unfortunately, some things that can be recycled end up in landfills because many items are not extracted or separated from the municipal waste line. The Village of Downers Grove is combatting this by, among other things, using local drives and events to collect recycling, hazardous waste, and certain construction waste, in cooperation with local businesses and nonprofit organizations. In 2013, the even collected over ninety thousand pounds of waste that may have otherwise gone to landfills in Illinois. Some of the items redirected from landfills include:

• Fourteen thousand pounds of carpet.
• Almost eight thousand pounds of paper.
• One hundred and eighty-nine cell phones.
• One hundred and forty eyeglasses.
• Almost sixty thousand pounds of electronics.
• Over one hundred flags.
• Eighty bikes in working order.
• Seventy-four fire extinguishers.
• Over fifty propane tanks.
• Forty-five hundred pounds of lead-acid batteries.
• Almost four thousand pounds of clothing, appliances, and furniture.
• Home tools and building tools amassing to about two thousand pounds.

Getting Rid of Yard Waste

Every year, most of us in Downers Grove must go through the process of raking leaves and tending to our yards. Yard waste is best collected separately from regular waste so that it can be disposed of environmentally. Because yard work is seasonal, the Village collects yard waste through the week of December 9, when most of us have moved on to dealing with snow. Residents that have yard waste can place debris in a thirty-three-gallon biodegradable paper bag or unlined can. Remember to place a sticker on each bag or bundle and to limit both to fifty pounds in weight. Residents are also advised by the Village to limit their yard waste by mowing leaves before putting them in bags: a process that reduces the number of bags needed to about fifteen percent. Composting is also a natural way to biologically decompose organic waste and can be further studied at the University of Illinois Extension website.

Getting Rid of Special Waste

Do you have special waste, including chemicals, electronics, or other hazardous or special waste? There are a couple of easy methods of disposal. The first is the Household Hazardous Waste facility in Naperville that is open to all residents of Illinois. The Household Hazardous Waste facility is located at 156 Fort Hill Drive in Naperville and accepts the following items:

• Aerosol cans.
• Poison, pesticides, fertilizers, solvents, and strippers.
• Household cleaners, drain openers and pool chemicals
• Automotive fluids that may include oil, gasoline, and anti-freeze.
• Asbestos materials that weigh fifty pounds or less and can fit in a fifty-five-gallon drum.
• Batteries for cars and trucks, marine batteries, and sump pump batteries.
• Propane tanks of twenty pounds or less.
• Fire extinguishers and flammable substances.
• Fluorescent bulbs, CFLs (sealed, unbroken only), thermostats and mercury-containing devices.
• Oil-based paints and stains (latex paint can be hardened and disposed of in trash).
• Prescription (with the exception of controlled substances) and over-the-counter medications.
• Unknown hazardous substances may also be accepted.
• Peanut oil

Compact fluorescent bulbs can also be brought to the following locations:

• Kin-ko Ace Hardware located at 6216 Main St, Downers Grove and 8625 Woodward Avenue; both sites charge fifty cents per bulb.
• Home Depot located at 2000 Butterfield Road in Downers Grove, 2101 West 75th St. in Darien, and 7200 Woodward Avenue in Woodridge.
• IKEA located at 750 Boughton Road in Bolingbrook.