Pumpkins collected for compost in Libertyville, Mount Prospect

Suburban composting events designed to keep Halloween pumpkins out of landfills were held Saturday in Mount Prospect and Libertyville.

Residents dropped off their pumpkins at the events in their respective communities, where they were removed from vehicles and placed into the buckets of front loaders in Mount Prospect, or thrown into dumpsters in Libertyville prior to being transferred to composting sites.

The Mount Prospect event was held at the public works building, while the Libertyville event was held in the parking lot of Adler Park Pool.

Both events had the goal of keeping pumpkins, which are relatively bulky and heavy, out of the waste stream.

"It's a benefit for the village because we're trying to be sustainable," said Kristina Jakupovic, administrative superintendent for the Mount Prospect Public Works Department.

For Mount Prospect, it was the third annual event and Jakupovic noted some of the pumpkins have elaborate decorations. "In previous years we've had some really creative people."

Jakupovic said in the event's first hour, 55 cars had passed through the site and the 5-cubic-yard bucket of a front loader had been filled. The pumpkins will be taken to a composting facility on the South Side of Chicago, she said.

The pumpkins collected in Libertyville will be taken to a composting facility near Wauconda.

Pete Adrian of the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County stressed the need to keep pumpkins out of landfills where they would otherwise produce methane gas, which is harmful to the environment. "When you put something in a landfill, you put it into an airtight, watertight tomb," Adrian said.