How To Recycle Holiday Lights, Christmas Trees In Skokie

SKOKIE, IL — Instead of tossing old holiday lights in the trash, area residents can drop them off outside the headquarters of the Skokie Public Works Department through the end of the month.

Village staff have placed a container outside the main entrance at 9050 Gross Point Road, and drop-offs are accepted from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on weekdays.

The Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County runs the holiday light recycling program in partnership with Elgin Recycling.

Rope lights, LED lights, C7 or C9 lights, mini-lights and extension cords are all acceptable as part of the program, village staff announced.

Public works crews were also scheduled to begin picking up live Christmas trees this week, and more pick-ups are due to take place next week.

Tree pickups are not done on a precise schedule and depend on weather conditions, according to village staff.

Residents were asked to leave trees beside their trash carts — with no lights ornaments or bagging — to allow for the trees to be chipped into mulch.