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River Valley Recycling

River Valley Recycling began as a general metal recycling business in 2004 that focused on ferrous and non-ferrous metals. The business has grown it’s operations in order to collect a wider variety of recyclable materials, handle larger volumes, and develop processes that convert materials into a reuse-able form. In the past few years, the company has immensely grown its recycling operations for automobiles, fi ber products (paper, card-board, etc...), plastic, glass, and other areas.

River Valley Recycling makes recycling possible for a broad range of customers from individuals to major producers. The full service recycling company is dedicated to giving communities and their residents an appropriate way to avoid land fi lling their recyclable wastes and earn some extra money doing it. River Valley Recycling collects and recycles millions of pounds of materials each year that would otherwise end up in landfi lls.

The company offers its customers three recycling centers which are effi cient and convenient. Each site provides an indoor drive-thru for easy unloading and a fast payout process. River Valley Recycling has its own fl eet of trucks, heavy equipment, and containers, allowing it to service producers of all types and sizes.

Materials accepted include: aluminum, cans, copper, brass, cast iron, steel, stainless steel, cars and light trucks, machinery, cardboard, paper/newspaper, books, magazines, glass, plastic, and electronics. River Valley Recycling pays for most all materials (except for glass, plastic and electronics). Call or visit one of their recycling facilities for details regarding materials accepted, pricing and operating hours.

River Valley Recycling wants to help you recycle because of the benefi ts recycling provides to the community and the environment. See their website www.RiverValleyRecycling.net for more information about their facilities and business.

River Valley Recycling Locations:288 W South Tec Drive

Kankakee, IL(815) 928-8400

1244 Grinnell Rd.Kankakee, IL

(815) 937-5742

US-24 & N 1600 East Rd.Iroquois County, IL

(815) 683-2905

THE

Sponsored by Kankakee Community College, Security Lumber Company,

River Valley Recycling LLCCREATING THE FUTURE FOR THE KANKAKEE RIVER VALLEY

Why recycling is importantThis issue of Green Scene will focus on the three “Rs”- Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. But there’s actually another

“R” – RETHINK. We need to approach everything we do from a new perspective. As the Ecology Center at Berkley says,“If it can’t be reduced, reused, repaired, resold, recycled or composted then it should be restricted, redesigned or removed from production.”

Both at home and at work, recycle your newspapers, beverage containers, paper and other goods. Purchase products in containers that can be recycled and items that can be repaired or reused. Use rechargeable batteries and be sure to recycle them when they are worn out. Use safer “green cleaning” products and buy them in refi llable containers. Reduce, reuse, and recycle at work by using two-sided printing and copying; buying supplies made with recycled content; and recycling used printer and toner cartridges. See if you can “go paperless” by using electronic messaging and fi ling techniques.

In addition, support recycling markets by buying products made from recycled materials. Reducing, reusing, and recycling in your home and at work helps conserve energy and reduces pollution and greenhouse gases from resource extraction, manufacturing, and disposal. Here are some facts about the benefi ts of recycling common materials:

Steel: Since 1973, the steel industry has reduced its energy consumption by 45% per ton of steel. The use of recycled steel saves energy. It requires 33 % less energy to produce steel from recycled material than to make it from iron ore. Today, 2/3rds of new steel is produced from recycled scrap making steel the nation’s leading recycled product.Aluminum: It takes 23% less electricity to produce a pound of aluminum today than it did 30 years ago. This is mainly due to recycling. There is no limit to the number of times aluminum can be recycled. Using recycled aluminum requires about 95% less energy than producing it from bauxite ore. Once an aluminum can is recycled, it can be part of a new one in six weeks.Paper: Each ton of recycled paper can save 17 trees, 380 gallons of oil, three cubic yards of landfi ll space, 4,000 Kw of energy and 7,000 gallons of water. This is a 64% energy savings, a 58% water savings, and creates 60 pounds less air pollution.Plastic: Americans use 2.5 million plastic bottles every hour! Most of them are thrown away. Each ton of plastics recycled saves as much water as is used by a person in two months. Recycled plastic bottles are used to produce about half of the polyester carpet manufactured in the U.S. Each square foot of carpet uses 5 two liter bottles.Glass: Glass can be recycled forever. For every ton of glass recycled, about a ton of raw material (sand, limestone, soda ash) is saved and 25% – 32% less energy is needed than to produce “new” glass. Recycling also reduces associated air pollution by 14% – 20%. It is estimated that 80% of recovered glass containers are made into new glass bottles. Many other materials such as construction debris, batteries, electronic scrap and cell phones can also be recycled with similar environmental benefi ts.

Task Force Hammer – A unique way to help Kankakee County’s Veterans

Task Force Hammer is a community service project of our local Veteran’s service organizations to promote and coordinate recycling efforts in Kankakee County. Supporters can join in their goal of using proceeds from recycling to fund home repairs for Veterans and seniors. Belson Steel and River Valley Recycling have partnered with Task Force Hammer to make this plan work. It’s really very simple – all that needs to be done is to take the recyclables (metal scrap, cardboard, paper, aluminum) to one of these two partners and ask that any proceeds be donated to the “Rebuilding Together” account. “Operation 1st Saturday” has been developed as part of this program to make it even easier to recycle paper and support the cause. Starting with the Kankakee VFW, containers will be placed at various locations on the 1st Saturday each month to collect paper for recycling. All revenues generated will go to Rebuilding Together. By participating, supporters will be protecting the environment and helping a Veteran or Senior. Call Jim Ryan at 815-935-1936 for more details.

Where can we take it?

The beautiful way to save energy.

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As part of the ECONOMIC STIMULUS PACKAGE, you may qualify for a federal income tax credit of up to $1500*.

www.securitylumberco.com • Home Center 933-3307 • Contractor Sales 933-3300Locally Owned and operated since 1946.

Need a

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North Street at Railroad

Spring ‘10 publication Issue #5

All sorts of things can and should be recycled. It’s the right thing to do. In some cases, cash or other incentives may result from your recycling effort. Please call these sites to get further information about materials accepted and other conditions. Here are some options available in our area – there may be others as well!

CONVENTIONAL RECYCLABLES – (plastic, paper, glass, aluminum, etc )

• Use your community’s program• If you don’t have one, consider taking them to River Valley

Recycling• Support “Task Force Hammer” and use Operation 1st Saturday

to recycle your paperSCRAP METALS (steel, copper, etc.)

• River Valley Recycling 815.928.8400• Belson Steel Scrap 815.932.7416BATTERIES – it depends on the type but here are some options:• Interstate Batteries in Bradley takes all types 815.802.1083• Radio Shack and Best Buy stores take certain types of

rechargeables 815.939.0091• Sears and Lowes stores accept power tool batteries and

some othersPRINTER, TONER AND INK CARTRIDGES • Staples has a rewards program 815.932.0705• Offi ce Max also has an incentive plan 815.928.8804• Walgreens will refi ll or recycle your ink cartridges 815.932.9615

CDS AND DVDS• These can be recycled for free. Go to HYPERLINK “http://www.

cdrecyclingforfree.com” www.cdrecyclingforfree.com for information and recyclers

WOODEN PALLETS• Enterprise Pallets 815.933.7114ELECTRONIC WASTE• There are two drop off sites: Kankakee Public Works and Brad-

ley Public Works for details contact KRMA at 815.933.0444• Search the net for other resources for e-waste recyclingCELL PHONES• Here are 3 good options: Sell for cash, donate to charity or

recycle as e-waste• cellforcash.com and gazelle.com will give price quotes for your

cell phone• Locally, Harbor House accepts donations of cell phones.

Call them at 815-432-3500 for details and locations cellphonesforsoldiers.com, recellular.com, 911cellphonebank.org and others all recycle used phones and contribute the proceeds to charitable organizations.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS• Don’t fl ush or throw away your old, unwanted prescription drugs!• Take them to one of 11 area police facility drop-off sites: Brad-

ley, Bourbonnais, Kankakee, Grant Park, Aroma Park, Momence, St. Anne, Herscher, Manteno, or Kankakee County (2 sites)

E-Waste Recycling / Reuse Rules

We live in an electronic age and we have become more and more dependant on electronic “gadgets” to organize our lives, access information, communicate, entertain us, and perform our jobs. Unfortunately, these devices quickly become obsolete and become part of our waste stream. Because they often contain heavy metals and other hazardous materials, they require special handling for disposal. In response to this need, Illinois enacted the Electronics Product Recycling and Reuse Act (Public Act 95-959) in September 2008. This rule requires manufacturers to establish a recycling or reuse process for the electronics it sells and retailers must provide recycling information to electronic equipment purchasers at the time of sale. The rule sets incremental annual recycling and reuse goals for manufacturers as well as incentives and penalties for meeting or failing to meet the goals. There are registration and reporting requirements as well as annual fees established. The new law also bans landfi lling of all televisions, monitors, desktop and note book computers and printers after January 1, 2012. How these new rules change the way electronics are marketed, sold and ultimately disposed of is yet to be seen.

E-Waste Hazards

What’s E-Waste and what harm can it do?

“E-Waste” is a shorter version of the term, electronic waste,

which is used to refer to the numerous electronic gadgets that we

have all come to depend on for entertainment, communication, data

manipulation and information storage. It’s the phones, video games,

DVD players, and especially, the computer systems which we feel the

need to acquire and replace too frequently. The amount of this material

has increased signifi cantly from year to year and proper handling and

disposal of it has become a serious problem. Besides the shear volume

of this component of the waste stream, there are hazardous materi-

als contained in them which can be released causing environmental

problems. These are: Lead and Arsenic – in cathode ray tubes and

solder; Selenium – in circuit boards; Polybrominated fl ame retardants –

in plastic casings, cables, circuit boards; Cadmium – circuit boards and

semiconductors; Chromium and Cobalt – in steel for corrosion protec-

tion and magnetivity; and Mercury – in switches and housing.

So use your equipment as long as you can, pass it on to

someone else to use when you’re done with it, and recycle it

when its worn out!

Career CornerReuse can be the basis for a successful career

Gail Wallace is the owner of an architectural restora-

tion business housed in a 20,000 sq.ft. space in the Ken

Hayes Industrial Park located in Bradley, Illinois. She has

been a resident of Kankakee for more than 40 years and

has three sons, one of whom is a key member of the

Restoration Works Inc. team. Employing more than 2 dozen workers, the company specializes in

restoration of windows, doors, and other wooden architectural features from historic and vintage

buildings. Restoration Works, Inc. has been a “green” business since it opened its doors. Restor-

ing the hundred year old wooden features made from “original forest” wood and allowing them

to be “reused” for another century is a very sustainable practice. Even high quality replacement

windows can not be expected to match the life cycles of the restored ones according to Gail.

Her client list is impressive: including buildings from New Mexico to New York. Refurbishing

doors from the University of Chicago’s Rockefeller Memorial Chapel, restoring 756 windows from

Yale University, and work at the century old Robie House Museum and other Frank Lloyd Wright

designed structures in the Chicago area are all projects completed by Gail’s company.

Restoration of windows is the company’s real forte. Windows “are the soul of a building.

These windows are some of the richest treasure of America. It’s the wood itself that is so special,

this original forest wood, and then this incredible craftsmanship”, says Wallace. Although some of

Gail’s employees had been restoring windows for over 10 years, the historic restoration work got

its start in 1988 when the company landed its fi rst big job – restoring 835 windows at the Rookery

in Chicago. This 19th century structure is widely referred to as the jewel of the city’s historic high-

rise buildings. Gail says that it was this job “that threw us fully into window restoration. It was

when we fi rst thought, this could be a valid business.” Learning and honing the necessary skills

to achieve true restoration of historic windows has taken time and much research by Wallace and

her staff. Her son Byron is the technical expert of the fi rm. Specialized epoxy mixes and staining

techniques were developed to assure that the restored windows have the necessary strength

to last another 100 years with out losing their design, function and appearance. The process also

makes them very energy effi cient with high tech weatherstripping, caulk applications, tight joinery

and insulating glass is used when desired.

Restoration Works, Inc. has established itself as a state of the art restoration facility and is

listed by the National Park Service as an “approved historic window restorer.” For information go

to www.restorationworksinc.com or call 815-937-0556

Portions of this article were taken from Images Kankakee River Valley v.7, “Windows of Opportunity” by Sharon H. Fitzgerald, copyright© 2009 by Journal Communications, Inc. Reprinted with permission of Journal Communications, Inc. Visit us online at HYPERLINK “http://www.imageskankakee.com” www.imageskankakee.com.

Because they often contain heavy metals and other hazardous materials, they require special handling

Act (Public Act 95-959) in September 2008. This rule requires manufacturers to establish a recycling or reu e proce for the electronic it ell and retailer mu t provide recycling information to electronic

Events

SUSTAINABILITY COURSES OFFERED THROUGH KCC’S OFFICE OF CORPORATE AND CONTINUING EDUCATION

CALL 815/802-8200 FOR DETAILS AND REGISTRATION

Sustainability Week April 19 – 23, 2010Kankakee Community College will hold its fourth annual celebration at its main campus on River Road. Plans include an EXPO on April 22 Earth Day of residential and commercial energy effi ciency and “green technology” products and services. Cell phone and battery recycling opportunities as well as movies covering Sustainability topics will also be offered as part of the week’s celebration.

Exploring the Art and Science of Composting Methods– a workshop offered by George Blackman on Saturday, April 24, 2010 from 1:00 – 4:00 p.m. at Stelle, Illinois.Topics include: Vermi-compost; BioIntensive Composting Methods; Biodynamic Methods as well as information about equipment needs and the many benefi ts of compost use. Cost: $40; a $10 lunch is avail-able before the workshop Visit “http://www.csceducationalagricula-ture.org” www.csceducationalagriculature.org or call 815/256-2204 for more information or to register.

KCC’s College for Kids - Get Green and Grow It!July 26 and 28, 9:00 a.m. to NoonCost is $65 and program is limited to 8 students.Kids will learn how we are all connected to the land and animals around us. Additional discussions will focus on how we use the land today impacts how we use it tomorrow and what is local food and how do you fi nd it? Finally, kids will create their own container garden that they can bring home. Suitable for kids entering 3 through 5 grades.Contact Juli Gereg at 815/802-8206 for more about this and other Col-lege for Kids programs at KCC

FARMER’S MARKET RETURNS! April 24 – First day of Spring Market season (8 a.m. – Noon) May 22 – First day of Summer Market season (7 a.m. – Noon)

KCC Recycles!As part of Kankakee Community College’s commitment to

Sustainability, the campus recycling program has been enhanced. Additional recycling containers have been purchased and deployed around campus to increase the quantities of plastic, paper, aluminum, and glass recycled by the faculty, staff, and students. More effi cient processing of these collected materials as well as cardboard, wooden pallets, fl uorescent bulbs and ballasts has been made possible by part-nering with local recycling companies who provide bulk containers and pick-up services or easy direct-ship processing.

E-Waste is disposed of either by recycling or through arrangements with a company which collects working computer systems from donors which are packaged and shipped for continued use by schools in Africa (Senegal) and South America (Guatemala). Without this “reuse” program, these schools would not have computers for their students. KCC has turned over 16,981 lbs. (8.49 tons) of E-waste for recycling or reuse since February of 2008.

Annual Recycled Quantity projections: 39.62 tons per yearMixed paper – 31,056 lbs. or 15.53 tonsPlastics – 2,127 lbs. or 1.06 tonsAluminum – over 205 lbs.Glass – about 360 lbs.Cardboard – 18,204 lbs. or 9.10 tonsScrap metals – 2,300 lbs. or 1.15 tonsPallets – 14,364 lbs. or 7.18 tonsFlourescent bulbs – over 154 lbs. (275 bulbs)Ballasts – more than 28 lbs. (13 units)E-Waste – 10,714 lbs. or 5.36 tons

April 22, 2010 is Earth Day! Did you

know that this year marks 40 years since this worldwide recognition

of the world’s environmental problems was established?

From 1970 – a time when rivers caught fi re and many cities

were shrouded in smog to 2010 - when global climate change is the

environmental topic of choice.

Much progress has been made but much is yet to be done to

preserve our planet.

See these sites for more about Earth day and its history:

www.epa.gov/earthday, www.earthday.net/earthday2010, or just

google “history of earth day”

Green Byte: Earth Day

KCC Recycles!

815.928.8400288 W South Tec Dr

Kankakee, IL

815.937.57421244 Grinnell Road

Kankakee, IL

815.683.2905Rt 24 & N 1600 East Rd

Iroquois County, IL

www.RiverValleyRecycling.net

THREE LOCATIONS WITH INDOOR DRIVE-THRU FACILITIES

River Valley Recycling is dedicated to helping communities put materials back into a reusable

form and reduce the burden on landfi lls.

• Aluminum • Cans • Copper • Brass

• Cast iron• Steel• Stainless steel • Cars/Light Trucks • Machinery

• Cardboard • Paper/Newspaper • Glass • Plastic • Electronics

We recycle