(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — With election day next Tuesday, campaign yard signs seem to be everywhere. Even though nearly all of them can be recycled, many will end up in landfills.
Clair Ryan is president of the Illinois Recycling Foundation and the recycling coordinator for Kane County.
She says most campaign signs are made of plastic with metal legs, which are difficult for most recycling facilities to handle.
“It is recyclable. However, it's not ever going to be accepted in your curbside bin because when it comes to plastics, the facilities that sort our recycling are designed to sort containers,” Ryan said.
She says there's one alternative for recycling campaign signs made of a thin plastic film.
“Those can actually be taken to store drop offs with plastic bags, they're made out of the same film plastic that a plastic bag is made out of. So I take mine personally to either a Jewel Osco or a Mijer or Kohl's because those stores participate.”
Ryan says another other type of campaign sign, made of corrugated plastic, is harder to recycle. She says some communities allow residents to drop off campaign signs for recycling.
She also says some campaigns will retrieve their signs after the election.
If you can't return or recycle campaign yard signs, Ryan says put them in the regular garbage and don't mix them with your other recycling.
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