Is Kankakee scrapping its bi-weekly curbside recycling program?

That answer is not yet known, but as the city is seeking a new five-year contract for residential curbside garbage disposal services, one of the two options being offered is ending the long-standing recycling program.

Kankakee’s current five-year contract with Phoenix, Arizona-based Republic Services concludes Dec. 31.

As the city seeks new contract proposals, one of the two options available to bidders is not offering the every-other-week recycling collection as a way to keep expenses down.

And as it was stated during Monday’s Environmental Services Utility Committee meeting prior to the Kankakee City Council meeting, the recycling program – in place in Kankakee for at least 20 years – could be tossed into the trash.

Contract proposals are due back to the city administration by Dec. 2. If all goes as planned, the council will be voting on a new contract at its Dec. 15 meeting.

The new contract takes effect Jan. 1.

In an effort to keep costs as low as possible, a contract option could be to do away with door-to-door recycling, said Kankakee Administrator Elizabeth Kubal.

Mayor Chris Curtis said eliminating this service is only a possibility. He also noted that if curbside recycling is eliminated due to financial concerns, there would be three city locations established for residents who would want to continue the practice.

To end curbside recycling, Curtis said the city would need to see “significant savings.” He declined to define what would be considered significant.

The simple fact is there is virtually no market for recyclable materials, mainly meaning glass, aluminum, paper and plastics, Republic Services has previously stated to Kankakee officials.

There is also the issue of the vast majority of curbside recycling pickups – estimated at 80% to 85% – eventually finds its way to the landfill because most of these materials are contaminated with non-recyclable garbage, Kankakee officials have been told.

According to a Recycle Track Systems report from 2021, the municipal solid waste recycling rate remains as low as 35% nationwide.

Non-recyclable materials routinely found in recycling containers include food scraps, diapers, Styrofoam, fabrics/clothing or “dirty” recyclable (meaning greasing pizza boxes or similar types of non-recyclable material).

According to The Recycling Partnership report in 2024, only about 21% of all recyclable materials are captured, with a significant portion lost at the household level.

The recycling market has gone through a depression during the course of the past two decades as the costs associated with it have risen and manufacturers have found it less expensive to work with raw materials.

The city council’s License & Franchise Committee, chaired by 6th Ward Alderwoman Kelly Johnson, will meet at 5:30 p.m. Dec. 3 in the council room and make a recommendation on a contract proposal.

Johnson said after the ESU Committee meeting, she would not be opposed to ending curbside recycling, as so few people citywide are participating.