SMART Archives - Chicago Textile Recycling

Bad Bin Operators

October 11, 2023

Over the years of collecting textiles at bins and partner resale stores, we frequently receive emails from recyclers asking why they cannot find a list of our bins on our website. The automatic reply we send back is this one:

As for your question regarding public lists, at this time we don’t provide a list of our bins. Unfortunately in our industry there are many illegal bin operators that don’t follow permitting and permission guidelines. These companies often search for public lists and drop illegal bins on the listed properties. This causes confusion and hassle for our donors as well as partner locations. So we keep our list private to help protect our recycling partners from these types of operations.

This response is frustrating for us as an organization that wants to encourage our donors to donate textiles and give you all the information you need to do so. We also know it is frustrating for our followers who want an easy and accessible way to find bins or partner stores. In this blog, we will explain more about the ins and outs of placing bins and how to do it reputably.

Bad Bin Operators

The primary reason we cannot provide a public list of our bins and partner stores is bad bin operators. There are always permits and guidelines involved in placing a textile recycling bin, and we have found that there are many illegal bin operators that don’t follow these.

One news report from a few years ago stated “In Chicago, the city requires permits for donation bins but our investigation found scores of unpermitted bins that litter the streets.” (found here) When unlabeled bins are placed, illegal dumping increases as the sites are not serviced regularly, if at all. Another news report stated, “Many bins overflow with uncollected items, are misused as trash receptacles and attract garbage pickers and vermin.” (found here) In addition, donations are often used for profit alone in the resale market rather than for nonprofit or for the purposes of textile recycling and cleaning up our planet.

Illinois Law for Bin Operators

Bad bin operators are violating numerous rules and regulations listed here when they fail to label or clean out their bins, or place them without permission from businesses they are placed beside.

“To obtain a permit, bin operators must follow guidelines, including paying a $100 permit fee every two years, posting the name and telephone number of a local contact person on the bins and maintaining an updated website, which lists the addresses of each collection bin maintained by the operator.” (found here)
Also these bins are required to make detailed map drawings of permanent structures and signs around the bin to obtain the initial permit, a letter signed by the property owner or lessee, provision of a bin large enough to hold requested donations and a commitment to regular maintenance and donation removal so that the bin doesn’t become dilapidated or overflow, among other regulations. (Found here)

SMART Bin Operator Code of Conduct

In addition to following Illinois laws for operating our bins, we go above and beyond by following the S.M.A.R.T. Bin Operator Code of Conduct, found here. A few ways we ensure the best care for our bins and relationship with those who donate is:

“3. Refrain from using deceptive or ambiguous labels/logos on bins that imply contributions will go to support a particular cause if there is no underlying affiliation with a charitable organization and clearly disclose the for-profit nature of your business on the collections bins”

And

“5. Service collection bins as often as necessary to avoid accumulation of recycled items or debris around said bins,”

And

“6. Provide the property owner and/or representative with a working phone number and commit to responding to any complaints regarding bin maintenance within 24 hours of receiving notification during regular business hours”.

How Can You Help

With the numerous rules required by the city and the additional code of conduct we follow for our bins, we are doing our part in providing the public with well-maintained and labeled bins. We are always looking to place more bins and make donating more convenient for our followers, so please reach out if there is a local business in your area willing to host a bin. Ways that you can help as you donate is to always work with or donate to reputable bin companies and to never leave items at unlabeled bins or bins that are already overflowing. Please contact us for any questions or to find the nearest bin or partner resale store to your location.

Resale Stores

Textile Recycling During Covid-19

July 16, 2020July 14, 2020

As resale stores and our own textile recycling bins reopen around the Chicagoland area, you might be wondering:

“Is this safe?”

“Can and should I donate?”

“What new protocols are in place to keep employees, donation providers and customers safe from catching coronavirus?”

In this blog, we hope to educate our recyclers about what has changed in textile recycling during Covid-19 and how to stay healthy during our ongoing pursuit of keeping textiles out of landfills and taking care of our Earth.

Is This Safe?

The biggest question about recycling textiles and buying secondhand during the coronavirus pandemic is “Is this safe?”

Recently, the Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles association (S.M.A.R.T.) posted about this very question. They wrote,

“Worried about visiting your local donation center, charity, or thrift store? Have no fear! As they reopen, we have heard from many entities that they are taking social distancing restrictions and enhanced sanitation policies seriously. This means you can donate in confidence, while knowing that you are making a significant difference for our environment.”

As a personal consumer of secondhand items, I have already witnessed this statement at work shopping at my local thrift store as well as attending a children’s consignment sale.

At the thrift store, aisles had been spread wider to encourage social distancing, markers were placed on the floor at the check-out lines, sanitizer was right inside the door and all employees and shoppers were wearing masks as required.

At the consignment sale, there were two employees behind plastic windows with masks on, hand sanitizer and masks upon entry as well as a thermometer checking customers’ temperatures. While shopping, there was only one other shopper who entered the entire hour I was there. And of course when I returned home, all items immediately went into the laundry or were sprayed down to disinfect.

In addition to reassuring those who shop and donate at secondhand stores in their blog post, S.M.A.R.T. issued a statement months prior addressing the Used Clothing Ban that many countries have adopted during Covid-19. In it, they assure importers the safety of continuing to buy and receive secondhand items, which also can reassure patrons of thrift stores. They stated,

“Numerous studies including those published in the New England Journal of Medicine and The Lancet have shown that COVID-19 may be detectable on hard, non-porous surfaces like plastics and metals for hours and potentially up to 2 to 3 days. The virus, however, is far less likely to survive on soft, porous surfaces like textiles including rugs, carpets and clothing, new or used. As recently issued guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on COVID-19 notes, mitigating whatever small risk might be present on soft, porous surfaces like textiles is easily addressed by laundering the textile/garment according to manufacturer instructions in warm water. This advice is supported by the fact that countless hospitals and other medical facilities are utilizing reusable linens and personal protective equipment/hospital apparel to protect healthcare workers that are treating patients infected with COVID-19. Notably, the CDC has not made any changes to existing guidance on how these textiles should be handled and processed since the outbreak of COVID-19 in the United States.” (read more here)

Another member of S.M.A.R.T., Bank and Vogue, agrees,

“From way before the COVID-19 outbreak, thrift stores have taken measures to keep a clean and healthy environment in their facilities. During this pandemic, these procedures have just heightened. As thrift stores begin to open up around the world, they have implemented new protocols to ensure the virus is not transmitted to any of their stakeholders. For instance, the clothes collected from bins usually stay 72 hours in trailers before getting into the warehouse. Also, thrift stores disinfect the workplace several times a day, all the employees use protective masks and gloves, and they assure social distancing by establishing a maximum capacity inside their facilities.”

It is ultimately up to you and how comfortable you feel leaving home right now, and what protective measures you are currently following when being around others. However, rest assured that donation centers and thrift stores are taking every measure on their end to ensure that coronavirus is not spreading at their facilities and that they are striving to keep employees safe and healthy.

Can and Should I Donate?

Can I?

The simple answer to the second question is a resounding yes. Thrift stores are reopening. Our textile recycling bins are slowly opening back up also, with the bin located by our warehouse already available 24/7. Donation centers are open again with stacks upon stacks of boxes and bags and furniture donations. What has everyone done at home during the quarantine? Clean out their closets…and homes apparently. Thrift stores and donation centers are currently overwhelmed by donations. A friend online recently posted a picture of our local Goodwill store with donations stacked from the donation door all the way to the front door. It has become a problem across the country. Are your donations still desired by secondhand stores? Yes. But maybe not right now.

The overwhelming donations have become such an issue that the media has begun reporting about it. In a recent piece by Adam Minter, author of “Secondhand: Travels in the New Global Garage Sale”, he stated,

“A drop-off in demand plus a surge in supply is creating a storage problem, with thrift stores across the country now looking for additional space or even suspending donations. That, in turn, has led to a rush of well-intentioned spring cleaners dumping their used goods at the doors of closed thrift shops. These informal “donations” don’t help anyone: They create health and safety risks, force thrifts to pay disposal costs for stuff that might otherwise have been a source of revenue, and increase the likelihood that perfectly good products will end up in landfills.”

Keeping this in mind, Minter and executives of charity shops he spoke with encourage those who want to donate to simply hold onto their donations for a while longer until donations start to slow down. In addition, Minter shared advice to those desiring to donate:

“If you’re looking to donate, you should also make sure your stuff is labeled and take care that it’s actually usable. A broken toaster isn’t a gift to Goodwill, it’s a cost. Most thrifts maintain lists of acceptable items that are worth consulting before dropping anything off. Whatever you do, don’t ‘donate’ when the thrift store is closed. More likely than not, your stuff will be pilfered or ruined by the elements before it gets through the door.”

During the first few months of coronavirus, we were stuck at home with nowhere to go surrounded by all of our stuff, so we cleaned. Chicago Textile Recycling made posts about now being the time to clean out those closets and dressers and more. As we cleaned out our homes, we had no choice but to store it somewhere until donation centers and recycling bins reopened. Here is the advice that Minter, thrift and charity shop owners, and CTR wants to pass along…keep it there, for now. Simply wait a little while longer to donate so that these stores and charities are not overwhelmed or burdened by your donations, but waiting eagerly for them again.

Should I?

As stated in the first quote above by the S.M.A.R.T. association, “you can donate in confidence, while knowing that you are making a significant difference for our environment”. Should you continue to donate old textiles instead of throwing them in the trash? Absolutely. In the same post, S.M.A.R.T. says,

“If you have taken the time to go through your old clothes, shoes and other unused or unwanted textiles while navigating quarantine, we hope you opted not to toss them in the trash. Why? Because when they find their way to landfills, they have many negative environmental impacts, including contributing to greenhouse gas emissions!”

Can you donate? Yes. Should you donate? Yes. But hold on to your donations just a few months more. Thrift stores and charity shops want your donations. The health of our planet needs your donations to stay out of landfills. This involves not throwing your old textiles away AND waiting until those businesses are ready and able to handle your donations in a way that benefits our planet and continues to help them in their missions to help others through your donations:

“The thrift industry is more important than most Americans realize. Largely out of sight, it employs tens of thousands of people and generates at least $18 billion in annual revenue. It keeps an enormous amount of used stuff out of landfills, and contributes billions each year to social-service and job-training programs that are crucial to communities nationwide.”

Minter continues later in the article, describing consequences of overwhelming resale stores right now,

“The consequences should be a concern for all Americans, whether or not they shop in thrift stores. In 2018, Goodwill alone funded $5.3 billion in charitable services, including education assistance, job training and work placements. Smaller donation-based charities, such as the arc Thrift Stores in Colorado, spend millions each year employing people with disabilities. As the pandemic’s economic impact spreads, those contributions will necessarily shrink. Already, Goodwill is facing thousands of layoffs nationwide.”

Let’s take care of our planet and the people on our planet by waiting a little while longer.

What new protocols are in place to keep employees, donation providers and customers safe from catching coronavirus?

As stated above under “Is it safe?,” many thrift stores and charity shops have adopted new or increased existing disinfection protocols in their stores. In addition, they have implemented creative solutions to ensure social distancing and other ways to decrease the chances of spreading coronavirus in store. Some of these new protocols include:

clothes collected from bins usually stay 72 hours in trailers before getting into the warehouse
thrift stores disinfect the workplace several times a day
all the employees use protective masks and gloves
they assure social distancing by establishing a maximum capacity inside their facilities
aisles spread wider to encourage social distancing
markers placed on the floor at check-out lines to maintain six foot rule
sanitizer placed inside front door
shoppers requirement to wear masks being enforced
reduced hours to have more time for cleaning and disinfecting

With these protocols set in place, you can rest easy returning to your local resale stores.

Moving Forward

As we are all learning new ways of doing things during this time of coronavirus, it is still so important to continue to prioritize the health of our planet. Recycling textiles is one big way we can do this. Now that businesses and bins are reopening, remember to save your textile donations and gradually bring them in when your local resale stores are no longer overwhelmed. Remember also to prioritize the health of yourself and others by wearing a mask and social distancing.

Green Benefits

The 5 R’s

December 17, 2019December 19, 2024

“Although 75% of America’s waste is recyclable, we only recycle around 30% of it.”

In September, the Vice President of our company attended the S.M.A.R.T. 2019 Regional Meeting in Raleigh, North Carolina. Over the course of the weekend, he attended a Panel Discussion with three leaders making a difference in the textile recycling world. One of these leaders was David Rousse, president of the International Nonwoven Disposables Association (INDA). During his presentation, David discussed plastics in the environment, the importance of recycling, and posted one salient powerpoint slide that takes the three R’s we are used to… Reuse, Reduce, Recycle…two steps further.

In his “Desired Path Forward” for the future of our planet and recycling, David calls for each of us to “Support the 5 R’s”:

Refuse – plastic bags, straws, cutlery, etc
Reduce – use of plastic in packaging
Reuse – versus disposing; may include repair
Recycle – into same or another product
Repurpose – use an item for something else

At Chicago Textile Recycling, we strongly encourage our recyclers to recycle their textiles, with us, or with their local resale store. And even further, we truly desire to see each of you go beyond recycling only textiles to eco-consciously disposing of all recyclables you come into contact with, from plastics to aluminum, cardboard and paper to anything that can be kept out of landfills by using one of these 5 R’s. “Over 11 million tons of recyclable clothing, shoes, and textiles make their way into landfills each year.” With “9 out of 10 people [saying] they would recycle if it were ‘easier,’” we at Chicago Textile Recycling hope with education about recycling and raising awareness, these numbers can change.

A few months ago, we encouraged this very idea through a blog post highlighting a few things CTR does not accept in their bins and how you can go about recycling those products in your area. Read that blog here.

Refuse – plastic bags, straws, cutlery, etc.

The first “R” David highlighted was to “Refuse” plastic bags, straws, cutlery, etc. When out and about, it is so easy to stop by a store and buy an item and simply accept a plastic bag upon purchasing that item. But David and those at INDA encourage us to refuse plastic bags. If it is something small, choose instead to carry the product(s) out of the store in your hand or purse after purchasing. Even better, place a few reusable grocery bags in your trunk, and put them back in there after unloading each time when you get home. That way, you are never in need of a plastic bag even if you’re simply making a quick stop on your way home from work.

Refuse straws and plastic cutlery by drinking with an open lid or also stocking your car with reusable straws and cutlery when out and about. Go one step further and bring your own reusable travel cup. These are small items that could even fit in your purse or backpack if you use alternative transportation getting around in daily life. Small efforts go a long way in helping reduce your carbon footprint. “According to a study done by the University of Georgia, 18 billion pounds of plastic trash winds up in our oceans each year. To put that in perspective, it’s enough trash to cover every foot of coastline around the world with five full trash bags of plastic…compounding every year.”

Reduce – use of plastic in packaging

The second “R” is to “Reduce” the use of plastic in packaging. Recently, we posted an article about how parts of Asia are reducing packaging by grouping produce items with banana leaves instead of plastic bags. (Read more here) Part of this problem is improper disposal. “The United States throws away $11.4 billion worth of recyclable containers and packaging every year.” The other part of the problem is simply reducing the need for this packaging with creative solutions, such as banana leaves for produce. “The amount of plastic film and wrap produced annually could shrink-wrap the state of Texas.”

Some ideas from this website on reducing your plastic use include opting for products in recyclable boxes or cardboard containers rather than bottles, staying out of the frozen section of the grocery store and buying bulk with reusable containers.

Reuse – versus disposing; may include repair

In our consumer-driven society, we often choose to throw away something when it is in need of repair rather than taking time to mend it or have it mended. A hundred years ago, this was not the case. Most belongings were made with high quality and longevity in mind, so when they did break or need mending, there were shops in place or know how by the general public in fixing these items at home. Many women sewed the family’s clothes, so when there was a rip in the fabric or a hole in a sock, repairs were easy and done right at home.

This newer proliferation of consumerism and the ease it brings in replacing rather than repairing has led to an overabundance of items ending up in our landfills when they could have lasted longer with a bit of loving repair. Our third “R” is “Reuse” – versus disposing, which may include repair.

Learning the basics of sewing can help many of your textiles have a longer shelf life at home and making good use of youtube videos can also help in minor repairs of items around the house. With landfills reaching their limits, it is increasingly important that we seek out items that are made with high quality and return to the mindset of repair and restoration over replacement.

Reuse and DIY (Do-It-Yourself) is in fact an up and coming trend and has the potential to again become the norm. Bloggers, Youtube sensations, a peaked interest in DIY through the creation of Pinterest and small starter companies are pursuing this very idea of reuse in restoration through antiquing, restoring old homes with reclaimed barn flooring and original revamped antique pieces, reusing old clothes items in new ways with many other ideas of reuse in the everyday. As the focus on environment and recycling continues to grow, hopefully these interests of the upcoming generation will continue to expand the idea of reuse into the norm. The saying “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure” rings true here as antiques and resale stores become a larger part of our consumer trend.

Recycle – into same or another product

The fourth “R” is “Recycle” – into the same or another product. Reuse and recycle are often confused terms so a simple explanation to differentiate the two is that reuse involves using the same product in its original form for the same or a different purpose. Recycling is a process and involves turning one product into a new product so as not to waste the material.

Recycling can involve numerous products, from cans to paper to textiles to plastic bottles, and much more. Some even make businesses out of collecting and creating art to sell with other people’s recycled goods. You can recycle paper down to pulp and create new paper or recycle blue jeans into insulation for homes. There are many ways that recycling companies have figured out how to create new products from older products with life still left in them.

As many of you know, the heart of who we are at Chicago Textile Recycling is about educating our community. Knowledge has been growing in the problem of textiles in landfills, and so has the pursuit of creating a closed loop of textiles and fashion. “Over 11 million tons of recyclable clothing, shoes and textiles make their way into landfills each year.” Donating your textiles to resale stores and donation bins is one big way you can give your textiles another life. The same is true of other goods in your home with regards to being recycled versus placed out by the curb on trash day.

Textiles can be recycled in almost every case, with the majority reused and resold in other countries. Other textiles are recycled and cut into wiping rags, and others are recycled and broken down into fibers to make filling for car seats, insulation and other products. Here is our blog about the process recycled textiles go through after donation.

Repurpose – use an item for something else

Already mentioned previously in this post is the fifth and final “R”: “Repurpose” your items for something else. There are many ways you can do this. Cutting an old coat down to a vest, using recyclables to make art, using old wood flooring to make picture frames or child size furniture, or turning old bed sheets into new clothes are just a few ways household items can be repurposed. Follow our page on Facebook or Twitter to read articles about different companies that are doing this very thing with textiles.

One example of this in our very own backyard is the Shedd Aquarium in downtown Chicago. Local artists have created sea animal sculptures outside the aquarium on display made from trash collected from our oceans. With a little bit of creativity, new purposes can be found for items anywhere you look.

wRap up

With a little extra effort, you can easily work these five R’s into your daily routine. Recycle textiles, bring along reusable bags and dining accessories, become educated in what to recycle and how to recycle it, and use a little bit of creativity when items in your everyday no longer serve their purpose. When each of us plays our small role in reducing our output to landfills, we can make a large difference in impacting our world for a better tomorrow.

All quote recycling statistics were found here.

Bad Bin Operators

Bad Bin Operators

Illinois Law for Bin Operators

SMART Bin Operator Code of Conduct

How Can You Help

The 5 R’s

Refuse – plastic bags, straws, cutlery, etc.

Reduce – use of plastic in packaging

Reuse – versus disposing; may include repair

Recycle – into same or another product

Repurpose – use an item for something else

wRap up

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