If Donald Trump won’t tackle climate change, then Chicago will” was the headline of an August op-ed piece in the Guardian by Mayor Emanuel, who loves to tout Chicago as a green city, all the more so since the Trump administration thumbed its nose at the Paris climate agreement. Earlier this month Chicago played host to a conference (rather grandly titled the North American Climate Summit) that drew 51 mayors who signed on to a charter calling for cities to meet or exceed the targets set by the Paris accord. Chicago already has a Climate Action Plan of its own.
The Blue Bag Recycling Program was finally scrapped in 2008, which marked the start of curbside recycling in Chicago. Or rather, selected wards in Chicago. Citing costs, the city introduced its Blue Cart Residential Recycling Program gradually, leaving most neighborhoods without any program. Budget constraints continued to hamper the rollout. In 2010—the year the city released its Climate Action Plan—irate city workers tipped reporters to the existence of hundred of blue carts sitting unused in a south-side warehouse, orphaned by lack of funds for trucks and employees.
