‘It just didn’t take off’: Why Lake County plastic bag recycling program is ending next year

For more than two years, thousands of people in nine Lake County suburbs and five townships have placed items like plastic bags and Styrofoam containers in orange bags and affixed them to their recycling bin on their regular trash-collection day.

But the Hefty ReNew Program, a joint effort of the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County, LRS and Reynolds Consumer Products, is coming to an end on June 30 because of the difficulty finding entities that can recycle the materials.

Walter Willis, SWALCO’s executive director, said he is disappointed by Reynolds’ decision, but understands the challenges the company faced finding recyclers for plastic bags.

“We put a lot of time and effort into getting people educated. A lot of people were very enthusiastic about using it,” he said. “We do not want it incinerated for energy. We were trying to keep it out of landfills.”

Though Reynolds was unavailable for comment, its Hefty website noted that participation was strong, but finding end users was a challenge. LRS sent the contents of the orange bags to Reynolds, which hoped to find end users.

“The recycling infrastructure needed to consistently manage such a broad range of materials and align with community preferences has not developed at the pace or scale anticipated,” the company said on its website.

Though Reynolds is bringing the program to an end, it will continue its effort for more than nine months. People who have orange bags left on June 30 can contact Hefty for a refund.

For people who want to recycle plastic bags rather than put them in the garbage, Willis said stores like Jewel and Walmart are continuing to accept plastic bags for recycling.

Doug Ower, the chair of the Woods and Wetlands chapter of the Sierra Club, said Friday the program had merit.

“It’s very disappointing,” Ower said. “This effort to recycle plastic was to keep it out of the stream to landfills. It shows why we can’t rely on consumers and an unstable recycling market to solve the plastic crisis.”

Greg Jackson, the chief of staff for the city of North Chicago — one of the program’s participants — and a member of SWALCO’s Board of Directors, said the city made a strong effort to educate its residents about the program, but their enthusiasm was not great.

“We made the bags available to the public, but it wasn’t working, unfortunately,” Jackson said. “We promoted it on social media and our Facebook page. We took them to municipal events. It just didn’t take off.”

Jessica Sciarretta, assistant to the Deerfield village manager, said there was enthusiasm among residents.

“We were really excited over the program, and it showed,” Sciarretta said. “This is part of what happens with pilot programs and innovation. It’s too bad. Our residents are really eco-conscious.”

Besides North Chicago and Deerfield, participants included Bannockburn, Gurnee, Highland Park, Highwood, Lake Villa, Lincolnshire, Riverwoods, Avon Township, Moraine Township, Shields Township, Warren Township, and West Deerfield Township.