La Salle County schedules e-recycling event for March

Those looking to part with their electronic waste will have at least four opportunities in 2020.

La Salle County’s 2020 electronic recycling events are scheduled for Saturdays, March 28, June 6, Aug. 29 and Oct. 3, according to the county's website.

Brian Gift, director of La Salle County’s environmental services and land use department, talked Thursday about the county’s four prior collection events in 2019, as well as the 2020 schedule beginning in March.

The events are free and conducted at the La Salle County Government Center, 707 E. Etna Road, Ottawa, for La Salle County residents.

Residents are limited to two televisions per vehicle and must pre-register prior to the event.

Gift said the pre-registration process should organize the event and speed up the proceedings.

The Illinois EPA established a clearinghouse that pairs recyclers with collectors and allows for distribution of electronic manufacturer funds for recycling.

La Salle County joined in 2019 and had collection events in Peru, Mendota, Northville Township and Ottawa. They were partnered with ERI as the recycler and collection was subcontracted to Eworks, which provides labor and removal at the events for free but charged $25 per television/monitor.

Some recycling centers offer electronics recycling for a fee, such as CIMCO in Ottawa, but there is no permanent recycling center in La Salle County that accepts CRTVs, according to Gift’s report. It’s also become more difficult for municipalities to host events for their residents since the Illinois EPA established the clearinghouse, Gift said in the report, which has made La Salle County’s events busier.

Additional information will be shared three weeks before the events on the county's website at lasallecounty.org/environmental-services-and-land-use