Lake Forest Lands Among Top 12 SWALCO Sites For Textile, Shoe Recycling

LAKE FOREST, IL — Lake Forest placed among the Top 12 sites in 2025 for both of the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County’s recycling programs for textiles and shoes, city officials announced.

The city participates as a host site for SWALCO’s Clothing and Textile Recycling program and its Reuse-a-Shoe program.

Lake Forest residents recycled 31,785 pounds of textiles and clothing during 2025 and another 1,605 pounds of shoes, according to the city. Those totals placed Lake Forest in the Top 12 sites for both programs in 2025.

The city hosts three textile recycling bins and one shoe recycling bin. Textile bins are located at the Compost and Recycling Center, Dickinson Hall, and the Recreation Center. The Reuse-a-Shoe bin is located at the Compost and Recycling Center.

The city’s post points to a broader waste issue tied to clothing disposal. Textiles are the fastest-growing waste stream in the United States, with nearly 85% of all clothing and textiles ending up in landfills.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates the average person throws away 70 pounds of clothing each year, much of it within 12 months of being made.

Lake Forest said the two SWALCO programs are designed to divert items from landfills so they can either be reused or recycled. That means clothing, textiles and shoes collected at the local drop-off sites are intended for a different path than household trash.

The recognition puts Lake Forest among the stronger-performing host communities in SWALCO’s network for 2025.

Residents looking for more information about what can be dropped off and how the programs work can visit SWALCO’s website.