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The Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County (SWANCC) is providing one-day document destruction events for residentially-generated paper, such as medical forms, bank statements, personal files, retired tax forms, etc. This event is open to any resident that lives in a SWANCC-member town – IDs will be checked. No materials from businesses, schools or institutions will be accepted.

You can sign up for SWANCC's Elist at the top of the page to be reminded by email of these events and other SWANCC special collection events. Click on the community's name for a flyer with details.

The events will run from the spring through fall from 9:00 am to 11:00 am and there is no cost to attend. Paper clips and staples do not need to be removed, but please remove binders. Also, please have your ID ready, as SWANCC Staff will be checking each vehicle. Workers will help take paper out of vehicles and place in toters. The documents will then be loaded into a shredding truck on site. The paper will be cross-shredded, baled, and recycled. Residents from a SWANCC member community may participate in events in any community.

No business or institutional waste will be accepted.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, it is estimated that 10 million Americans were victims of identity theft last year, prompting the National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC) in Washington to issue new warnings about safekeeping financial information.

Will the documents be shredded at the drop-off location or are they transported to another facility?

All documents will be shredded on-site. Workers will remove documents from vehicles and put them in a toter. When the toter is full, it is suctioned into the truck and shredded at once.

Will the documents be cross-shredded?

Yes, the machine will cross-shred the documents.

Do staples and paper clips need to be removed?

No, the machine can handle staples and paper clips, however, you need to remove all binders.

Is there a certain way to prepare my documents?

Simply put all paper documents into a bag or box for easy removal.

What happens to the shredded paper?

The shredded documents are transported to Groot’s recycling facility in Elk Grove Village and baled before being recycled into new paper.

What type of documents should I be keeping?

Generally, taxable documents should be stored for seven years. Some documents should be kept forever, and others can be recycled after your review.

Learn more.

The document destrucion Events have come to a close for 2009. More events will be scheduled for spring of 2010. Please check back in April for this information, or sign up on SWANCC's Elist at the top of the page.

Tips from Accurate Document Destruction Company, a division of Groot Recycling and Waste Services:

Shred all personal documents before throwing them away.
Do not carry your Social Security card with you.
Make sure your credit cards are arriving on time. If not, it could mean someone has taken over your account and changed your billing address to cover his tracks.
Only do Internet business with established, reputable companies.
Never give personal information over the phone, the Internet or through the mail unless you know with whom you are dealing.
Be cautious about where you leave personal information in your home, especially if you have roommates or employ outside help.
Get a police report if your wallet is stolen or lost.
Do not put sensitive outgoing mail, such as a credit card application, in an outside mailbox.
Check your credit report at least once a year.

If you become a victim:

Call the Federal Trade Commission hotline: 877-IDTHEFT.
Contact the fraud departments of the three major credit reporting bureaus--Equifax, Experian and Trans Union--and place a fraud alert on your file.
Notify all companies where you have accounts--banks, credit card issuers, utilities.
File a police report.