On Tuesday, April 3rd, Cook County Board approved President Preckwinkle’s Solid Waste Management Plan (SWMP) for suburban Cook County, the first plan generated in 12 years. The SWMP outlines the county’s current level of waste generation, disposal and recycling, and makes recommendations for improvement. President Preckwinkle’s 2012 Plan reimagines traditional solid waste planning. Instead of focusing on landfilling and waste-to-energy conversion, the SWMP first recommends source reduction (preventing waste in the first place), then reuse, then recycling, followed by energy recovery. Landfilling is a last resort. “We have a responsibility to the residents of Cook County, and future generations, to employ creative and aggressive measures to reduce solid waste in our communities,” President Preckwinkle said. “Our Solid Waste Management Plan is taking the first step in meeting this environmental challenge, and we are working toward a visionary goal of 100% waste diversion from landfills.”

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2. Plan Requirements
Illinois Solid Waste Planning and Recycling Act:
Requires Cook County to have a Solid Waste Management Plan and submit
updates to the IEPA every 5 years.
1996 2011
Original Plan Adopted Current Draft Update
by Cook County and prepared by Delta
Approved by IEPA Institute
2000
Update completed
and approved by IEPA
2011 Update Includes:
• Summary of current waste management conditions
• Contemporary waste management options
• The status of existing recommendations
• New recommendations
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3. Zero Waste Goal
The focus of the update shifted from conversion and landfilling to a zero waste policy
with an emphasis on the “3 R’s”: Reduction, Reuse, and Recycling
(Click on the link for more detail)
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4. The Plan Update Recommends
3 recycling goal levels
• Visionary goal of 100% diversion
• Baseline goal of a 25% recycling rate for each
sub-county region
• Stretch goal in the range of 50-70%
The state requires a minimum 25% recycling rate
goal, but based on the experiences of other
counties higher rates are possible.
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5. Plan Update Structure
Structured around four major categories of the
waste stream
Typical Construction
household and and demolition
office waste (C&D) material
Landscape
Electronic
waste and food
waste
waste
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6. Data Collection
The Plan Update cites a critical need for
more accurate and complete data on
waste generation quantities and recycling
rates.
• Waste Generation data for portions of Cook County that
do not have active waste management authorities
varied substantially.
• There were large reporting variations within data over
the years.
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7. Recommendations
The update includes thirty three
recommendations for improving
solid waste management in Cook
County.
Click here to review all of the recommendations
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8. Update Process
• The Update was prepared with input from the three
sub-county solid waste associations (click the link for their websites):
South Suburban Mayors
and Managers West Cook County Solid Solid Waste Agency of
Association (SSMA) Waste Agency Northern Cook County
(WCCSWA) (SWANCC)
*South Suburban Solid Waste
Agency (SSSWA)
• The Delta Institute also worked with other government and
regulatory agencies, recyclers, waste haulers and their associations
and, advocacy organizations to gather information for this Update.
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9. Steps
Environmental
Cook County
Control Public
Board Submit to IEPA IEPA approval
Hearing on
Approval
Draft Update
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10. New Legislation Since
Last Plan Update
The Electronic Products Recycling and Reuse Act (P.A. 95-059; 415 ILCS 150/)
Signed into law in September 2008, the act advances a producer responsibility model
for managing end-of-life electronics.
Will ban covered electronic devices from being landfilled in Illinois starting Jan. 1,
2012.
Illinois Composting Bill (S.B. 99) Amends the Illinois Environmental Protection Act (415 ILCS 5/).
Passed in June 2009 , the bill allows for the composting of food waste on a commercial
scale without triggering requirements for more heavily-regulated landfills, transfer
stations or other pollution control facilities.
Construction & Demolition Debris Legislation Public Act 96-1416,
Went into effect July 30, 2010
Amends the Illinois Environmental Protection Act regarding the management of Clean
Construction and Demolition Debris (CCDD).
The new law creates a state tipping fee for CCDD disposal and provides additional
standards for materials being accepted at CCDD facilities and soil-only fill sites.
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11. Waste Generation and Recycling Rates
Waste generation has grown due
to a slight increase in population
and a larger increase in per
capita generation rates in most
parts of Cook County.
Recycling rates have declined
among SSMMA and WCCSWA
communities. Recycling rates in
all but SWANCC communities still
fall short of the state goal of 25%.
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12. Municipality Waste Agency Affiliations
and Populations
• Of the 126 municipalities in Cook
County, 95 belong to one of the
three sub-county solid waste
agencies.
• Since 2000, the population of
suburban Cook County increased
by 0.7% and is currently
2,499,077
• Not all areas experienced
growth. While Elgin (which
straddles Cook and Kane
counties) grew 14.5% to 108,188
and Glenview grew 7%, other
larger cities (Cicero, Schaumburg,
Arlington Heights and Des
Plaines) declined.
Click on the image above for an interactive map
showing municipal waste agency affiliations
and population changes.
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13. IEPA Map of Cook County Solid and E-Waste Facilities
Looking for a solid, or E-waste recycling facility?
Click on an image below to go to a detailed facility map
IEPA Solid Waste Facilities IEPA E-Waste Facilities
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14. Contact Information
Cook County Department of
Environmental Control
69 W. Washington St. Suite 1900
312-603-8200
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