Lake County has two active landfills for household trash: Countryside Landfill in Grayslake and Zion Landfill. Both are privately run, so call ahead for rates and what they take.
The county's solid waste agency, SWALCO, handles the rest: household chemicals by appointment at its Gurnee facility, and free electronics drop-off for Lake County residents in Wauconda, Grayslake and Highland Park, up to seven items a visit.
Solid Waste Agency of Lake County (SWALCO)
1311 N. Estes St., Gurnee, IL Directions
| Twice a month (not December) | By appointment only |
Accepts: Household chemical waste from Illinois residents, by appointment.
Won't take: Electronics, business waste.
Use Route 41 to Delany Road (north), then Grove Avenue (east) to Estes Street.
Lakeshore Recycling Systems, for SWALCO
1350 N. Old Rand Rd., Wauconda, IL 60084 Directions
| Mon–Fri | 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. |
Accepts: Electronics, clothing and textiles, shoes, food scraps for composting.
Village of Grayslake, for SWALCO
585 Berry Ave., Grayslake, IL 60030 Directions
| Mon–Fri | 8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. |
| Saturday | 8:00 a.m. – noon |
Accepts: Electronics, clothing and textiles, shoes, food scraps for composting.
City of Highland Park, for SWALCO
1180 Half Day Rd., Highland Park, IL 60035 Directions
| Tuesday | 7:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. |
| First Saturday of the month | 7:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. |
Accepts: Electronics, clothing and textiles, shoes, foam cups and containers, fluorescent bulbs.
Household chemical waste is collected at SWALCO's Gurnee facility twice a month (except December), by appointment only, plus mobile collection events around the county from April to October. It's for residential waste only. SWALCO doesn't take electronics at Gurnee.
Electronics are free for Lake County residents at the year-round drop-off sites, up to seven items a visit (cords and cables don't count); businesses are turned away, and the host sites set their own hours. The Grant Township site closed permanently on November 30, 2025.
Illinois keeps a long list of things out of its landfills: car batteries (since 1990), yard waste (since 1990), appliances that still have their Freon, mercury switches or PCB parts (since 1994), whole tires, and, since January 1, 2012, TVs, computers, monitors, printers and other electronics. That's why landfills turn them away and counties run separate programs for them.
Illinois EPA lists two active landfills in Lake County, Countryside Landfill on Route 83 in Grayslake and Zion Landfill on Green Bay Road in Zion. Both are privately run. Kane County's recycling office sums up what to expect at private transfer stations: the public usually pays the same per-ton rate as commercial haulers, often with a one-ton minimum, and some sites require a hard hat and a high-visibility vest. Call ahead for the rate, the minimum and what they accept.
Every Illinois rate we've verified is side by side in our guide to what it costs to dump in Illinois.
Enter your city or ZIP for the nearest sites across Illinois, then call ahead — hours and access rules vary a lot here.