West Dundee last Kane County community to end electronics recycling
West Dundee is closing its electronics recycling site, leaving Kane County officials searching for alternative solutions.
The village was the last of four communities in the county to decide to end its involvement in the program. Batavia and Geneva stopped collecting electronics last year, and St. Charles recently announced its intent to leave the program.
The collection sites in West Dundee and St. Charles will both close at 3 p.m. April 8. Then, the county's special recycling events will be the primary way for county residents to dispose of computer monitors, TVs and other electronics for free, said Jennifer Jarland, Kane County recycling coordinator.
"We're working on other solutions, and we will find one," she said. "I'm confident we will continue to provide opportunities to recycle electronics for the residents of Kane County."
Over the past two years, an onslaught of materials - especially TVs - were left at the county's collection sites, Jarland said. Unable to keep up with the added workload, she said, municipalities stopped participating.
"It's just astronomical," she said. "The quantity, the volume of TVs we're getting has increased exponentially."
About to become the only remaining location in the county, West Dundee was faced with the possibility of an even larger influx in materials at its site, 900 Angle Tarn, said Public Works Director Eric Babcock.
Worried about manpower, safety and potential future costs, village officials decided to close their site, too, he said.
Part of the problem, Jarland said, is communities no longer have financial incentives to participate in such a program.
Manufacturers are required by state law to fund recycling programs per pound of material up to a certain weight. But items collected statewide started exceeding weight goals, Jarland said, and manufacturers no longer have the revenue to pay collectors. Instead, program costs could eventually fall back on municipalities, she said.
Additionally, Jarland said, public works staffs were taking on the responsibility of maintaining the recycling operations without receiving compensation.
By closing the West Dundee site, Babcock said, "we do save a good deal of labor and productivity. And of course, that's money in the end."
Still, the convenience of the program was a great advantage for residents, Babcock said. Village officials are searching for solutions of their own, he said, and may consider partnering with neighboring towns to hold biannual electronics recycling events.
Meanwhile, Jarland said, county officials will also begin discussions about restructuring a countywide program that wouldn't place the burden solely on a handful of municipalities.
"(Communities) want to offer the service if we can find a viable way to do it that doesn't entail added labor and liability for their staff," she said. "Everyone in the county is benefiting, so it makes sense that all cities would have some investment in finding the solution. We need to figure out a way to share the responsibility."
Free Kane County recycling events will also be held periodically at 540 S. Randall Road, St. Charles. The next two events are from 8 a.m. to noon April 9 and May 14.