Landscape Waste Disposal

Landscape Waste Disposal Options

Illinois law requires that landscape waste, consisting of leaves, grass clippings, and wood materials, be excluded from landfill disposal. Landscape pick-up begins in April and runs through the end of November.

NEW! Residents may now commingle food scraps with landscape waste. Visit the Food Scraps Composting page for more information. 

Residents who wish to dispose of their landscape waste have three options.

  1. Subscription Service: Residents can subscribe for a weekly pick-up of all landscape waste from April 15th to November 25th. For a flat fee, a separate vehicle will be dispatched to each individual subscriber to collect all landscape waste that has been set out for collection at the curb or ditch line adjacent to the roadway.
  2. Sticker Program: Residents can purchase landscape waste stickers that are affixed to each parcel of yard waste to be collected. Stickers can be purchased at Ace Hardware and Jewel / Osco on Route 120 in Grayslake.
  3. 2023 Spring Landscape Waste Clean-Up (Week of April 17th): Residents can participate in the annual Spring landscape clean-up day one weekend per year. Landscape waste must be contained in Kraft paper bags or 32-gallon rigid containers not exceeding 50 pounds.

To arrange these seasonal services, contact Waste Management directly at 800-796-9696. If you are not interested in subscribing to the once-a-week pick-up, Waste Management also offers residents a one-time yard waste pick-up for $10. Please call Waste Management at 800-796-9696 to arrange this service.

Leaf Vacuuming

Leaf vacuuming is another option available to residents. This service, offered in the fall, is included as part of your current monthly garbage rate and is of no additional charge to residents.

Branch Pick-Up Reminder

As a reminder to residents, the Village will only pick-up branches that have fallen as a result of a "High Wind Warning" storm event as described by the National Weather Service Chicago Weather Forecast Office. The "High Wind Warning" is described as an event that has sustained winds of 40 mph or greater and gusts of 58 mph or greater. If a weather event has winds at or in excess of these speeds, residents may call the Village within one week to make arrangements to have branches picked-up.

Residents can visit the National Weather Service, to find out whether an event qualifies as a "High Wind Warning" or has wind speeds at or greater than mentioned at anytime. The page that opens will indicate if a "High Wind Warning" was issued. This is how the Village will determine whether an event is a "storm".

If the event was not a "storm", residents who do not have landscape service should follow the Waste Management guidelines for cutting and bundling branches, and place them at the street edge for pick-up. Guidelines are as follows:

  1. Cut each branch to no more than four (4) inches in diameter.
  2. Bundles should not be more than two (2) feet in diameter, by four (4) feet long and no more than 50 lbs.
  3. Place a green yard waste sticker on each bundle.

Please contact the Request for Service System at 847-223-8515 for more information.