Close-up of a bale of aluminum cans sorted, ready to be shipped for recycling. (Photo: Gary Kopycinski – More photos available here)
Hazel Crest, IL-(ENEWSPF)- Do you think it won’t make a difference if you recycle that water bottle or piece of paper in your office? One man’s trash is another man’s treasure. The water bottles, envelopes, pop bottles, cardboard, and more gathered and sorted in Hazel Crest are all the bread and butter for the massive facility that does its part to keep items in use, sparing the landfills and the environment of more waste.
That one water bottle you’re about to drop in recycling will be bundled with thousands more.
Members of the Park Forest Environment Commission, staff, village board accompanied Mayor Ostenburg on a tour of Star Disposal’s recycling and sorting facility in Hazel Crest. The massive Diversified Recycling complex services 36 municipalities, including much of Northwest Indiana. Inside, arrays of conveyor belts, optic-sorting machines, belts and fans to separate paper from other materials, and a shift of 40 laborers work together to separate five hundred to six hundred tons of materials each day. The recyclables are gathered through the week from from more than 60,000 homes.
Mayor Ostenburg inside Homewood Disposal’s sorting and recycling facility near the beginning of the tour. (Photo: Gary Kopycinski –More photos available here)
Aluminum bales weigh just over 1,000 lbs., paper bales weigh in at around 2,400 lbs. each.
Commissioners Jim Saxton, Rich Devine, and Dave Bartlett joined Mayor John Ostenburg, Trustees Mae Brandon and Gary Kopycinski, Director of Public Works Ken Eyer, Assistant Village Engineer Roderick Ysaguirre, and Director of Recreation and Parks John Joyce for the tour.
