More tips for going green:
Reduce Your Impact
Reducing your impact on the environment can be your way of helping protect our planet. It can be as simple as turning off lights or as elaborate as installing solar panels for your home. Finding practical ways for you that fit your lifestyle is the first step in having a positive effect on the environment. Listed below are just a few of the numerous ways you can adjust your energy usage to better accommodate your budget, your needs, and the planet.
Nicor Gas
Nicor Gas offers free programs and home estimates to evaluate how you can be saving energy and money.
Offers for existing customers:
- Free water-saving kit
- Free weatherization kit
- Free energy assessment of your home
Visit the Nicor Gas website for more information.
ComEd
ComEd also offers free programs and home estimates to evaluate how you can conserve energy in your home and business.
Offers for existing customers:
- Free energy assessment of your home
- Free energy assessment of your business
Visit the ComEd website for more information.
Recycling & Landfill Information
The Village of Evergreen Park is dedicated to keeping our community clean and waste-free. The Village provides each property owner with three waste containers to be used for recycling, household waste, and yard waste. Each week these containers are emptied and the waste is collected by Waste Management. Extra containers may also be requested for an additional fee. Each container houses a different type of waste. Knowing where each waste belongs is the first step in accurately and efficiently reducing your waste.
In the Village of Evergreen Park, each homeowner has been given a 96 or 65-gallon blue garbage container; a 96-gallon green yard waste container; and a 96-gallon green/blue container for use at no charge. Please note that garbage pickup is Monday through Thursday only.
The blue container is for household garbage only. Do not place building materials, yard waste, large boxes, or branches in the container. This blue container is equivalent to three 33-gallon containers. A 65-gallon container is available for smaller households. Should a resident require a second container, please call Waste Management directly at (800) 964-8988. The additional container is at a cost of $3 per container per month.
The green container is for yard waste only. Only grass clippings, small plants, and small branches should be put in the container. Please do not place dirt, sod, rocks, landscaping timbers, or household garbage in the container.
Items such as landscaping timber and rock, construction debris, sod, dirt, railroad ties, and boulders that are too large for a normal garbage pickup must be phoned into Waste Management for a special pickup. There will be a nominal charge for these items.
The green/blue container is for recycling. This cart will be emptied by Waste Management every two weeks, on the same day as your normal waste pickup.
Resources to Go Green
While utilizing renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power or electric vehicles are good ways to go green, there are plenty of other ways you can reduce your carbon footprint. Many simple changes can be added to your daily routine that can simultaneously save you money and help reduce your impact on the environment. Simple changes such as turning off lights when you leave a room, not letting the water run when brushing your teeth, and even simply unplugging electronics when they are not in use, can create a sizeable positive effect on the environment.
Resources for more information on how you can help the environment:
• Recycling Tips & Information - https://earth911.com/
• Water Saving Tips - https://www.epa.gov/watersense/start-saving
• Ways to Reduce your Energy Use - https://www.epa.gov/energy/reduce-environmental-impact-your-energy-use
• Renewable Energy Information - https://www.energy.gov/eere/renewable-energy
• Energy efficiency & Assistance Programs - https://mayorscaucus.org/residential-energy-efficiency-assistance-programs/