RECYCLING (11-4-1820 et seq.)

Municipal Code of Chicago tit. 11, ch. 11-4, art. XIII

in effect

Municipal Code of Chicago § 11-4-1820 Findings.

11-4-1820 Findings. After due investigation and consideration, the city council finds: (a) It is in the best interest of the citizens of the City of Chicago to promote recycling as a key part of a comprehensive solid waste management plan, which will ensure that all municipal waste is disposed of in an environmentally sound and cost effective manner. (b) It is in the interest of the City of Chicago and its taxpayers to maximize the use of source reduction, recycling, and composting methods, thereby reducing the economic expenditures and environmental burdens associated with other waste management options in the long term, even if some short-term increase in the overall cost of solid waste management results. (c) It is in the best interest of the City of Chicago as a purchaser and consumer of goods to aid in the development of secondary materials markets by purchasing products made with recycled content wherever practicable and to assure a continuous supply of secondary materials sufficient to meet demand for the production of useful commodities and for the economy by establishing and promoting a program of recycling used and discarded materials. (d) It is in the best interest of the City of Chicago to create a recycling program that provides opportunities for everyone in the city to recycle to ensure a varied and comprehensive citywide recycling program. (Prior code § 99.1-1; Added Coun. J. 2-28-90, p. 12605; Amend Coun. J. 12-11-91, p. 10978)

Municipal Code of Chicago § 11-4-1830 Liberal construction of provisions.

11-4-1830 Liberal construction of provisions. The provisions of this chapter shall be liberally construed in order to implement findings expressed in Section 11-4-1820. (Prior code § 99.1-2; Added Coun. J. 2-28-90, p. 12605; Amend Coun. J. 12-11-91, p. 10978)

Municipal Code of Chicago § 11-4-1840 Recycling coordinator - Responsibilities.

11-4-1840 Recycling coordinator - Responsibilities. The commissioner of streets and sanitation shall appoint a recycling coordinator, who shall be actively involved in the city's solid waste policy development and implementation and report directly to the commissioner. The recycling coordinator shall have the following responsibilities: (a) To provide information on how, when and where materials may be recycled, including but not limited to an educational and promotional campaign using flyers, print and electronic advertising, public events, promotional activities, public service announcements and other techniques that are deemed useful, to assure the greatest possible level of participation with the provisions of this chapter; (b) To develop methods of adherence to the goals stated in this ordinance for recycling activities; and to coordinate and supervise implementation of those methods; (c) To coordinate and monitor the activities of curbside collection or recyclable materials, drop-off network, and buyback facilities dealing in such materials throughout the city and other public and private recycling throughout the city; (d) To collect and analyze information and data on recycling in the city; (e) To identify potential markets for recyclable materials, including maintaining an up-to-date list of potential purchasers of recyclable materials both within the city and in other locations; (f) To coordinate with the chief procurement officer in soliciting bids and obtaining statements of interest for the purchase of goods, supplies, equipment, materials and printing with recycled content and in complying with the requirements for municipal purchase of recycled products, as outlined in Section 11-4-1850* of this chapter; * Editor's note – Repealed by Coun. J. 9-14-94, p. 56187. (g) To develop, in coordination with the commissioner of streets and sanitation, rules and regulations required to execute provisions of this ordinance; (h) To develop and implement a public outreach program in cooperation with the department of streets and sanitation which will provide information to consumers on how to properly store and dispose of such products that cannot be eliminated. Such information shall, at a minimum, be distributed through the city's recycling and consumer education programs; and (i) To submit, on September 1st of each year, to the mayor and the city council an annual report on recycling activities in the city, with special emphasis on activities performed or sponsored by the city. This report will summarize recycling issues confronting the city in order of priority and make recommendations for improving the efficiency of separating, collecting, processing, marketing and selling materials recycled pursuant to this chapter. (Prior code § 99.1-4; Added Coun. J. 2-28-90, p. 12605; Amend Coun. J. 12-11-91, p. 10978; Amend Coun. J. 7-19-00, p. 38206, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 11-16-11, p. 13798, Art. II, § 6)

Municipal Code of Chicago § 11-4-1850 Reserved. Editor's note – Coun. J. 9-14-94, p. 56187, repealed § 11-4-1850, which pertained to the department of purchases, contracts and supplies – adoption of policies.

Municipal Code of Chicago § 11-4-1860 Regular recycling service.

11-4-1860 Regular recycling service. (a) The city council adopts the goal of making regular recycling service available by July 1, 1993, to 100 percent of the households in low-density dwellings served by the City of Chicago. In designing the service, the city shall consider the following: costs; waste reduction potential; recycling capacity of affected residents; quality of materials collected; and ease of access to the service. The regular recycling service goal shall be achieved in stages, as follows: (1) By July 1, 1992, no less than two-thirds of the households in low-density dwellings shall have regular recycling service. (2) By July 1, 1993, all households in low- density dwellings shall have regular recycling service. (b) In implementing regular recycling service, the department shall accord consideration for the collection, processing, marketing and disposition of recyclable materials to persons engaged in the business of recycling at the time of implementation, whether or not the persons are operating for profit. To further the purposes of this chapter, the department may utilize such persons to provide regular recycling service and, where appropriate, provide financial or other assistance to expand such activities to assist in the creation of new recycling facilities and operations. (c) Post-collection separation may be used as an adjunct to regular recycling service to promote further volume reduction and material recovery, or in case of failure of the regular recycling service. However, prior to substituting post-collection separation for regular recycling service in a particular area, the city or its contractors must have implemented at least two source separation and collection methods within a period of no less than 12 months, conducted an extensive recycling promotional campaign in the area, consulted with operators of private for-profit and nonprofit collection services, and provided an opportunity for the public to comment on any proposed substitution at a joint meeting of the city council economic development and energy, environmental protection and public utilities committees. Where the substitution of service occurs, the definition of regular recycling service shall be expanded to include post-collection separation for the purposes of meeting the above goals. (d) Where post-collection separation is used as a substitute for regular recycling service in a particular area, such separation facility shall recycle at least four categories of recyclable materials and utilize technology that has been demonstrated to be effective for the expected life of the facility. (e) The city may modify the individual components or mix of regular recycling service for an area if there are unforeseen or severely adverse market conditions. Primary emphasis shall be placed on alley/curbside collection as the preferred means of providing recycling service to single-family residents. (Prior code § 99.1-6; Added Coun. J. 2-28-90, p. 12605; Amend Coun. J. 12-11-91, p. 10978)

Municipal Code of Chicago § 11-4-1870 Reserved. Editor's note – Coun. J. 11-16-11, p. 13798, Art. II, § 7, repealed § 11-4-1870, which pertained to responsibilities of the commissioner of streets and sanitation.

Municipal Code of Chicago § 11-4-1880 Fee-for-service contracts.

11-4-1880 Fee-for-service contracts. Wherever recycling services are not to be directly provided by the department of streets and sanitation to households in low-density dwellings, the department shall adopt regulations governing the issuance of fee- for-service contracts to provide for-profit and not-for- profit recycling operations. Such regulations shall, at a minimum, include criteria for providing diversion credits, tax credits and any other forms of financial assistance deemed appropriate by the department. (Prior code § 99.1-7; Added Coun. J. 2-28-90, p. 12605; Amend Coun J. 12-11-91, p. 10978)

Municipal Code of Chicago § 11-4-1890 Promotion of economic development - Markets for recycled materials.

11-4-1890 Promotion of economic development - Markets for recycled materials. In order to promote economic development within the city and to encourage markets for recycled materials, the city department of planning and development in coordination with the chief sustainability officer and other city departments, as appropriate, shall implement programs to build demand for recycled products among Chicago businesses, residents and local governments; to build markets for recycled materials by attracting to the city manufacturers that use recycled material as raw material; and to assist businesses in developing capacity to use recycled material in place of virgin material. (Prior code § 99.1-8; Added Coun. J. 2-28-90, p. 12605; Amend Coun. J. 12-11-91, p. 10978; Amend Coun. J. 11-19-08, p. 47220, Art. VIII, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 11-17-10, p. 106597, Art. IX, § 8; Amend Coun. J. 11-16-11, p. 13798, Art. II, § 6; Amend Coun. J. 11-26-13, p. 67481, Art. I, § 22)

Municipal Code of Chicago § 11-4-1900 Reserved. Editor's note – Coun. J. 11-16-11, p. 13798, Art. II, § 7, repealed § 11-4-1900, which pertained to the promotion of recycling.

Source: City of Chicago, Municipal Code of Chicago (American Legal Publishing, codelibrary.amlegal.com)URL: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/chicago/latest/chicago_il/0-0-0-2655332Fetched: 10/24/2026