Illinois e-News Release

SPRINGFIELD —Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Illinois EPA) Director John J. Kim today announced an additional funding opportunity to provide grants to units of local government for the collection and disposal of household sharps from their residents. Household sharps include needles, syringes, and lancets that residents use in their homes for medical purposes. Through the grant program, Illinois EPA will reimburse grantees that operate a sharps collection station as defined in Section 3.458 of the Illinois Environmental Protection Act. A Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) has been posted at https://gata.illinois.gov/grants/csfa.html?page=Opportunity.aspx&nofo=2642.

“This grant program provides needed funding to local governments to offer residents a safe, free option to dispose of medical sharps,” said Director Kim. “Many households face the challenge of disposing of their medical sharps, and we encourage local units of government to apply for this funding to help ensure medical sharps are collected and disposed of properly.”

A total of $750,000 in grant funding is available, up to $35,000 per applicant, to cover expenses local governments incur in collecting and disposing of household sharps. Eligible expenses include costs to obtain collection containers for use by individual residents, collection receptacles at sharps collection stations, and the proper disposal of collected sharps. All required forms and information can be found at: https://epa.illinois.gov/topics/waste-management/waste-disposal/medication-disposal/sharps.html.

Applications for the Residential Sharps Collection Program will be accepted October 25, 2023 through 5:00 PM (CST) on December 9, 2023.

Please note that applicants must be pre-qualified through the Grant Accountability and Transparency Act (GATA) Grantee Portal before applying for a grant.