Mill Creek’s new trash and recycling contract begins Nov. 1, 2015, with a menu of three levels of services from which residents can choose. This means that everyone can either keep the same kind of service they have or choose to graduate into the more convenient and affordable full service cart system.

And the best news is that all services will cost less than what residents are currently paying.

Kane County Division of Environmental and Water Resources negotiates the trash and recycling service contract for the Mill Creek Special Service Area in order to secure the lowest-cost service for the residents of Mill Creek. The new five-year contract with Advanced Disposal (formerly Veolia) — the hauler that has provided this service to Mill Creek for the last decade — was approved by the Kane County Board on Sept. 8, 2015.

Recycling carts provided to all households: In all levels, each household will continue to have one 65-gallon recycling cart (tall wheeled cart with lid), with the cost built into each service level as outlined below. Beyond that, each resident has choices on stickers or carts for trash and yard waste.

Option One – Recycling Cart & Sticker Program: A dual purpose sticker may be used for trash (in resident’s container) and for yard waste (in Kraft bags). Stickers, priced at $3.02 in 2014-15, will now be supplied at a cost of $2.79 each from Nov. 1, 2015 through Oct. 31, 2016. The stickers will see a minimal increase of 6 cents to 7 cents per sticker each year across the five-year term of the contract.

Option Two – Recycling & Trash Cart Monthly Rate: Resident will have a 95-gallon trash cart as well as the 65-gallon recycling cart. Trash carts are supplied for a flat rate of $17.98 per month for the first year of the contract, with an increase of less than sixty cents per month each year of the five-year contract term. The cost for the more than 1,300 homes already subscribing to this level of service is currently $19.69 per month, so that’s a savings of $20.52 for the first year. Stickers will be used for yard waste, for the costs outlined in Option One.

Option Three — Three Cart Monthly Rate: Residents will be provided with three wheeled carts with lids: 65 gallon recycling cart, 95-gallon trash cart, and a 65-gallon yard waste cart for a flat monthly rate of $20.50 per month for the first year of the contract, with an increase of less than seventy cents per month each year of the five-year contract term. Yard waste service is provided April 1 through Nov. 30 of each year.

This new option offers a full service three-cart program for only a couple of dollars more than Option Two above. If you add in an average of 12 yard waste stickers and bags per year to the cost of Option Two then it is actually cheaper to move into the full service cart system of Option Three. No stickers or Kraft bags needed. Throw it into the cart and wheel it out on pick up day. Not only do carts provide a cleaner stress-free option for homeowners, they also make it easier for the automated trucks to collect the material.

Other services such as Christmas tree recycling and white goods recycling will be provided for free, while large household items like furniture will require one sticker per item. The household hazardous waste front door collection program will continue to be provided free of cost. The curbside branch/brush collection program is provided by Kramer Tree Specialists under a separate contract.

Residents will be sent program information and educational guides within the next month. Information will also soon be updated at the Mill Creek page on the Kane County website and this Advance Disposal website page.

Please feel free to call Kane County Recycling Coordinator Jennifer Jarland at 630-208-3841 or recycle@countyofkane.org with any questions.

SOURCE: Kane County Recycles press release