State Introduces New Toolkit to Help Businesses Boost Recycling

SPRINGFIELD - The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) in partnership with the Illinois Recycling Association (IRA) today announced the availability of a new toolkit to help Illinois businesses and organizations reduce the amount of material they pay to have landfilled.  The "Recycling Works: A Toolkit for Reducing Waste in the Workplace" resource guide was developed by Shaw Environmental with the support of a DCEO grant to IRA.

"Illinois businesses and other public and private entities still generate significant amounts of scrap and waste materials that end up being landfilled," said DCEO Director Warren Ribley.  "This toolkit is designed to provide businesses, schools, universities, governmental and other institutions with up-to-date information to evaluate and establish waste minimization and avoidance, reuse and recycling programs."

IRA is currently looking for opportunities to coordinate and partner with local interested groups to host 2-3 hour recycling workshops.  These events should be designed to be very low cost or free to invite the greatest amount of participation.  The number of workshops that can be held will be limited and final locations will need to be geographically diverse.  Groups interested in partnering to host a workshop should contact Mike Mitchell, Executive Director of IRA at 708-358-0550 (office), 773-203-3453 (cell) or via email at executivedirector@illinoisrecycles.org.
 
Two free toolkit seminars are currently scheduled on July 28 at the INB Center in Springfield and on August 11 at the Clock Tower Conference Center in Rockford.   Specific details and registration information for these events can be found on the IRA's website, www.illinoisrecycles.org.   Information about future workshops will be posted to this site as it becomes available.

The "Recycling Works" Toolkit is now available to be downloaded as a PDF document from the DCEO (www.illinoisrecycles.com) or IRA (www.illinoisrecycles.org) websites.  Finally, DCEO and IRA are working to finalize other tools that will supplement this initiative.  A database of recycling opportunities in Illinois is expected to be completed within the coming months.  More details will be forthcoming.