Recycling gets boost in Libertyville

The Jacobs family of Libertyville used to subscribe to unlimited garbage pickup — the most expensive plan.

But in recent years, their disposal habits shifted away from the 65-gallon garbage container that was wheeled to the curb.

“We filled that baby every week,” says Terry Jacobs, whose passion for recycling has led to a $5,000 grant and the backing of the village as a community educator on the subject.

“I’ve been a resident of Libertyville for more than 20 years. The challenge and the opportunity have been evident for a long time,” she said. “Finally, you come to a point you see it starts with an individual.”

And as the grant recipient, Jacobs will spread the word throughout the community by making presentations to students, seniors, Scouts, community groups and social clubs — whoever will have her.

“There really is no limit. I know there are a lot of people just as interested,” she said.

The grant to support recycling education came from Keep America Beautiful Inc., and is made possible through Waste Management Inc., which operates the Countryside Landfill and the adjoining Lake County Recycle America processing center in Grayslake.

Jacobs took the initiative to apply and submit a grant proposal after touring the plant. Because a supporting partner was needed, the village agreed to administer the grant and Jacobs will work as a volunteer on its behalf.

The grant is part of Keep America Beautiful’s Target City awards, presented to grass-roots groups nationally to prevent litter, reduce waste and beautify public spaces.

The family has downsized from a 65-gallon waste/garbage toter to a 32-gallon can. It also has upgraded from a small, lidless recycling bin to a large, 65-gallon recycling toter as a way to help the environment, family budget and to extend the life of the landfill where the waste ends up.

The family has reduced its waste disposal costs from about $75 to $18 every three months.

Though their recycling increased over time, Jacobs said she realized an even better goal than filling the 65-gallon recycling toter was to reduce the amount of recyclables through smarter purchases.

The effort has been so successful that the family puts its recycling toter and/or waste can on the curb for pickup about every two or three weeks, rather than every week as provided by the village.

Jacobs said the family tries to purchase only what it needs without unnecessary packaging — using a refillable tape dispenser, for example, rather than buying a new, self-contained one each time. The family also uses its own reusable cloth or canvass bags when shopping.

With the grant money, Jacobs plans to develop “toter tools” to inform Libertyville residents about recycling and reducing the amount of waste. The tools will strive to make recycling easier, she said, but there won’t be many handouts.

“I try as much as possible to limit the use of paper,” she said.

The information is intended to supplement information that should be on the village website in a few months.