Paper cups now recyclable for 1 million Chicagoland residents

Paper cup recycling will now be available to 1 million Chicago-area residents through Rosemont-based waste management company LRS, which provides blue cart recycling for four of Chicago's six residential recycling pickup zones.

"As an early pioneer of the circular or closed-loop operating model, we are thrilled to be a part of this initiative to expand curbside recycling in the Midwest," Mark Molitor, director of MRF operations at LRS, said in a statement. "The ability to add paper cups to our list of acceptable materials is in line with our goals of diverting and repurposing discarded materials, and we look forward to continuing our collaborative recycling efforts in the Chicagoland area."

The change will be accompanied by an outreach campaign to inform residents of what is recyclable - as well as to remind residents that all recyclables should be clean and empty before heading to the bin.

"This opportunity to expand recycling to include paper cups helps Chicago minimize landfilling, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, and moves us closer to achieving our goal of increasing recycling rates," Chris Sauve, deputy commissioner policy and sustainability for the city's Department of Streets and Sanitation, said in a statement.

After paper cups enter the recycling system, they will be baled with other paper materials and sent to mills in the Great Lakes region. That fiber will then be transformed into new paper products such as paper towels, toilet paper, napkins and even new paper cups.

"The Midwest represents a huge opportunity for adding paper cups to the residential recycling stream due to its proximity to end markets," Natha Dempsey, president of the Foodservice Packaging Institute, said in a statement. "We're excited to continue expanding recycling efforts in the region."

• Jenny Whidden is a climate change and environment writer working with the Daily Herald through a partnership with Report For America supported by The Nature Conservancy. To help support her work with a tax-deductible donation, see dailyherald.com/rfa.