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How to dispose of Halloween pumpkins in easy, eco-friendly ways · Kendall County News - Shaw Local

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  How to dispose of Halloween pumpkins in easy eco-friendly ways. This
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  article is being read by an automated voice brought to you by
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  Everlet. We are in peak pumpkin season, whether they are carved for
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  jack-o lanterns or part of outdoor home displays. But what happens when
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  those porch pumpkins start to decay? What is the best way to
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  discard them? Many do not realize that a thrown away pumpkin does
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  not break down and disappear on its own without leaving a trace.
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  Catherine Pereira, University of Illinois Extension, Local Foods and Small Farms Educator,
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  said in a news release from the extension. Pumpkins are organic waste
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  that when included in the trash, fill landfills, release the greenhouse gas
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  methane as they decompose and leach water into nearby waterways. Residents can
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  help reduce harmful environmental impacts by smashing and recycling pumpkins at a
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  local Illinois
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  Extension’s Pumpkin Smashes Community composting event in early November, the extension said.
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  The events will have a dumpster for recycling pumpkins with a little
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  added smashin fun. Illinois Extension's Smash events are in collaboration with Scarce,
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  an Illinois environmental nonprofit that started pumpkin smashes in 2014. Illinois Extension
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  joined the effort and hosted its first Pumpkin Smash in 2019. Illinois
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  pumpkin smashes have composted more than 1,600 tons of pumpkins since 2014,
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  reducing greenhouse gas emissions by almost 1,200 tons of carbon dioxide, according
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  to SCARS. These events have also diverted more than 345,000 gallons of
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  water from landfills, the extension said. Year after year, more local events
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  continue to pop up across the state, benefiting communities, partnerships and making
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  strides in environmental efforts through responsibly recycled, composted pumpkins, Pereira said.
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  Another benefit of the events is a decrease in the number of
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  pumpkins dumped on private property or in nature preserves. Natural areas often
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  become dumping spots for yard waste, pumpkins, straw and other organic decorations
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  which can be harmful to wildlife, the extension said. Extension-sponsored Pumpkin Smash
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  are free and planned throughout Illinois, with events in Cook, Kane, Lee
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  and other counties and more on November 7.
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  One location in Cook County is hosting an event on November 8.
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  Additional events and dates may be added. The Forest Preserve District of
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  Will County will host two pumpkin smash events this year. At Hidden
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  Oaks Nature Center in Bolingbrook, people can obliterate their pumpkins.
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  From noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, November 7th. The following week, Plum
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  Creek Nature Center in Crete Township will host pumpkin smash festivities from
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  noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, November 14th. No registration is required for
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  either drop-in program. Both nature centers will have multiple destruction stations available,
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  so kids and adults alike can choose How
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  to pummel and pulverize their pumpkins Last year, there were more than
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  125 pumpkin smash events, resulting in more than 400,000 pounds of pumpkins
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  being composted rather than sent to landfills. Since Scarce began the initiative
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  in 2014, more than 3.2 million pounds of pumpkins have been composted.
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  Find a smash event site near you by checking out the calendar
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  at go.illinoy.edu slash pumpkin smash or scarce.org slash pumpkins how to do
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  a pumpkins.
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  Smash. Collect pumpkins from the home, neighborhood, school, or workplace. Remove
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  candles, ribbons, paint, and any other non-organic materials. Drop off pumpkins at
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  a smash site on the date and time of the specific event.
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  Each site may vary in the available methods for smashing or depositing
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  pumpkins. The pumpkins are transported to a composting facility following the event.
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  Those who cannot attend a smash event can look to composting as
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  a solution for decayed pumpkins. Properly composted pumpkins do not produce methane
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  and do contribute to soil health. Learn how to get started composting
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  at extension.illinoy.edu.compost.