Eco-Friendly Logan Square
This is a copy of the Eco-Friendly Logan Square Resource Guide that I put together for the Eco-Friendly Logan Square Facebook group. If you'd like to suggest additions or edits, please join the group and contact me there to coordinate changes.
Compost
- DIY Resources
- Classes are often available via Dabble -- search their Chicago calendar
- ???
- Community Composting
- Altgeld/Sawyer offers limited community composting, May through October, on Wednesday Community Nights -- more info here
- Vendors
- Weekly or every-other-week pickup of a bucket they provide
- Zero-emissions pickup service
Electricity
- General Info
- ComEd is the electricity distributor for all of Chicago, but -- thanks to Illinois electricity deregulation -- you have the option to sign up for a different electricity provider. This gives you the ability to shop for cheaper options, or greener ones.
- Arcadia Power
- National company with Illinois presence
- They take over payment of your ComEd bill, and currently provide two plans:
- 50% wind -- you pay the same as you would with ComEd as your provider, but Arcadia routes some of your money to wind power via Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs)
- 100% wind -- you pay a surcharge over what you would have paid ComEd, and more of your money is routed to wind power generation
- In addition to your primary power plan, you can buy into their community solar plan, whereby you pay upfront for a share of their solar project and receive future discounts on your bill based on the solar energy they're able to generate
- They have a generous referral program -- ask around to see if a friend of community member could send you a referral link
Food - Where to Get It
- Community-Supported Agriculture (CSAs)
- Mint Creek - meat CSA
- Farmers Markets
- Gardening
- Community Gardens
- Grocery Stores
Other Resources Of Interest
- Map of locally owned Logan Square Small Businesses
Recycling / Eco-Friendly Disposal
- General Info
- Reduce, reuse, recycle... in that order. If you think someone might be able to reuse it, try listing it on the craigslist free section or the Chicago Freecycle group. You'll be surprised how true it is that one person's trash is another's treasure.
- Chicago-Wide Recycling
- City law requires that landlords provide tenants with a means to recycle
- Vendors
- City of Chicago (for buildings with 4 or fewer units)
- Waste Management
- Recycling rules
- How should I dispose of...
- Batteries
- General Info
- Single-use batteries typically cannot be recycled, but should be disposed of properly
- call2recycle.org has some good overall info on battery recycling
- Lakeshore Recycling Systems also has advice on battery disposal for various battery types
- Chicago Hazardous Waste
- Home Depot
- Cellphone batteries
- Rechargeable batteries
- Boxes
- While cardboard can be broken down and recycled, it’s better to reuse it when possible. If you have space to stockpile boxes and then list a big batch in the craigslist free section, it’s amazing how quickly people will snap them up -- especially if they’re big enough to be useful for moving.
- I've also heard there's a Facebook group called Box Dibs that's great for finding and giving away boxes
- CDs & DVDs
- Home - The CD Recycling Center of America - Mail the discs to a recycling facility
- Computer Components
- The Chicago Hazardous Waste electronics-recycling program accepts computers
- FreeGeek (3411 W. Diversey Ave)
- Accepts computers, LCD monitors, tablets, cellphones, keyboards, mice, networking equipment, printers, scanners, peripheral cards, cables, computer game media, and pretty much anything else computer-related
- No CRT monitors, televisions, photocopiers, fax machines, appliances, etc.
- You might have to pay a small fee for some items, such as non-functioning printers, that have little to no value -- call first if this is a concern
- FreeGeek also serves as a computer thrift store, and is a great way to avoid buying new
- Construction Materials / Lumber
- Hazardous Household Waste
- Chicago Hazardous Waste accepts a wide variety of hazardous waste, such as paints, cleaners, oils, unused or expired medications, and pesticides
- Household Electronics
- General Info
- If it's still working, consider giving it away
- Looking for great used stereo equipment? Check out Saturday Audio Exchange
- The Chicago Hazardous Waste electronics-recycling program accepts computers, televisions, VCRs ,DVD players, audio equipment (stereos), and telephones
- Mattress
- There has been at least one report that La Casa Norte accepts donations
- Packing and shipping materials
- EcoShip accepts "gently used" shipping materials, especially padded mailers and packing peanuts
- Plastic
- General Info
- Plastic recycling is handled very differently from one recycler to the next; be sure to read instructions specific to your recycler, and "when in doubt, throw it out" -- polluting the waste stream with plastics that don't comply with the recycler's rules leads to sub-standard batches of recyclables that cannot be sold for reuse
- Type 6 - polystyrene/styrofoam
- General Info
- Polystyrene foam, commonly called "styrofoam" is not recyclable in the Blue Cart. Few recycling facilities in the US accept Type 6 plastics. Ideally, you should avoid polystyrene containers. Complain to restaurants and other vendors who use polystyrene, and explain that there are better options.
- Dart Container Corp - 7575 S. Kostner Ave.
- Where can I recycle styrofoam in Chicago <-- details on where to find Dart dumpster
- Stereo - see Household Electronics
- Television - see Household Electronics
- Trash & Recycling Haulers
- City of Chicago (for buildings with 4 or fewer units)
- Waste Management
- Recycling rules
Retail / Services
- Cleaners
- ???
- Landscaping
- Merello-Sons Landscaping - Tim Merello is a longtime Logan Square resident who does great work and is happy to help you meet eco-friendly goals with fertilizer, pest-control, etc.