Sustainability Resources

Composting

• Residents can sign up for a Community Supported Composting program offered by Rust Belt Riders, which composts all household food scraps and BPI Certified products. Learn more. 
• Lomond residents are eligible for FREE drop-off composting from Rust Belt Riders via a year-long pilot program.
• Residents may also install compost bins in their yards. Please note, a one-time, free permit (PDF) is required. Learn to compost at a Cuyahoga Recycles Composting Workshop.
• Residential yard waste (grass, leaves, etc.) is composted by the City. View the guidelines for preparing your yard waste for collection by City crews.
• Leave the Leaves: 
  • Instead of raking (or blowing) leaves to the tree lawn each fall, consider leaving all or some of your leaves in place to provide important habitat for beneficial insects, including butterflies and other pollinators. 
  • Additionally, residents can mulch mow leaves into their lawn, which is a great way to fertilize your lawn naturally (and for free).

Solar panels on a Shaker Heights home. Scroll down to learn more about installing solar.

Energy Audit

“The cheapest form of electricity is through energy conservation.”  A typical home energy audit costs $283 to $425, depending on the square footage of the home, but can save from 5 to 30 percent of your energy bills and reduce your household carbon footprint. View additional information and recommendations.

Renewable Energy

Electricity

The City has created its own 100 percent renewable electric aggregation program. Residents may enter or exit the program at any time. 

Solar

Adding solar to your home or business directly reduces your carbon footprint, as you are displacing fossil fuels with a renewable source of energy for your property.

Shaker Heights is a solar-friendly community. The following resources are available to help residents get started:

• Read Demystifying Solar from the Spring 2021 issue of Shaker Life.
• Read the Planning Dept.'s solar installation guide to learn more about the process of installing solar in Shaker Heights. 
• Join the Solar in Shaker Facebook group to ask questions of residents who have already completed solar installations.
• Make an appointment with an expert member of the City's Sustainability Committee to receive a free exterior inspection of your property and advice about the feasibility of solar.

Lawn

Click here for ideas for greening up your lawncare program all year long from the City's Sustainability Committee.

The City no longer uses synthetic fertilizers/herbicides/pesticides on fields or in parks and playgrounds. View pesticide best practices from our Sustainability Committee (PDF) to learn how you can reduce your own use of these synthetic chemicals.

Garden

A great way to be more sustainable in your garden is to plant natives. Plants that are native to Ohio help support our community's ecosystem, including our pollinators. Many local nurseries now carry a selection of natives. The Cuyahoga Soil and Water Conservation District also sells native seeds and plants, as does the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes during it's annual plant sale (typically held in early May).

Bugs

Got mosquitos? No need to spray your entire yard with pesticides to prevent mosquitos. Instead, try this DIY Mosquito Bucket of Doom technique to effectively control these pesky bugs in a environmentally friendly way.

Grow Not Mow

The City's a Grow Not Mow program allows certain parcels of public land to return to a more natural state. Learn more about this effort.

Recycling

The City of Shaker Heights offers weekly recycling services, in addition to regular recycling events.

• View the City’s recycling guidelines for details on what's recyclable and how to prepare your recycling for collection by City crews.
• Residents and business owners may also bring their recyclables to the Service Center (15600 Chagrin Blvd.) on Saturdays and Sundays, 8 am-4 pm. This includes residents living in apartments that do not provide recycling services.
• The City hosts a regular series of recycling events at the Service Center, which will help you recycle items you cannot include in your recycling bucket. Learn more about these events.

What's recyclable is determined by the Cuyahoga County Solid Waste District in collaboration with the region's recycling facilities. Learn more about recycling in our region — including how to recycle items that do not belong in your City recycling bucket — at Cuyahoga Recycles.

Donations

Pass It On: A Resource-Full Guide to Donating Usable Stuff. Find over 140 area organizations that accept donations of toys, household goods, clothing, pet supplies, and other items.

DonateStuff.com: Schedule a pick up of gently-used items that a single person can carry—clothing, shoes, coats, purses, linens, athletic equipment and small home goods.

Stormwater

Stormwater that falls in Shaker Heights runs off our roofs, driveways and roads into our sewer system, then into the Doan Brook and eventually into Lake Erie. Unfortunately, this runoff picks up pollutants along the way, which end up in our watershed, including the Shaker Lakes. You can help by diverting some of the stormwater that falls on your property away from the sewer system. Bonus: If you divert enough stormwater, you can get a credit on your monthly sewer bill.

Here are two ways to divert stormwater at your home:

1. Install a rain barrel, which collects stormwater from your roof for you to use in your garden. You can purchase rain barrels at local retailers or make your own at a workshop organized by local organizations, including the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes. The City also periodically parteners with the Cuyahoga Soil and Water Conservation District on a rain barrel sale.
2. Install a rain garden, which also uses the stormwater from your roof. Learn how to design and install a rain garden with the Cuyahoga County Soil and Water Conservation District  Learn more about these and other ways to reduce your sewer bill — including vegetative strips and pervious pavements.

Residents who take these or other steps to reduce storm water run off on their property -- including pervious pavers and vegetative strips -- are eligible to receive a credit on their monthly bill from the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District.

The Doan Brook Watershed Partnership is offering FREE stormwater consultations for Shaker residents. Sign up here.

Transportation

Bicycles

Shaker is one of just 13 communities in Ohio to be designated as a Bike Friendly Community by the League of American Bicyclists. Learn where to bicycle in Shaker or download county bike maps at NOACA.

Electric Vehicles

Find EV charging stations in Shaker Height at: 

• City Hall at 3400 Lee Rd.
• The Dealership, 3558 Lee Rd.
• First Unitarian Church of Cleveland, 21600 Shaker Blvd.
• City-owned parking lot on Larchmere Blvd. (spring 2021).
• Thornton Park, 3301 Warrensville Center Rd.
• Coming soon! Tesla is adding EV charging stations in the Van Aken District.

Learn more about the City's EV chargers.

Public Transportation

The City of Shaker Heights enjoys a variety of public transportation options, including two light rail lines (the Blue Line with service between Tower City and Warrensville-Van Aken and the Green Line with service between Tower City and Green Road). Get maps and details at Ride RTA.

Trees

Help restore Northeast Ohio's tree canopy by planting trees on your property. 

• Wondering what to plant? The Tree Selection Guide (PDF) by the Cleveland Tree Coalition is a great place to start.
• Visit the ODNR's Urban Forestry Toolbox to learn more about the benefits of trees for cities like Shaker Heights -- and the importance of caring for our urban forest.
• Get advice for planting and caring for trees from the City's Forestry Department.
• Read about the City's work to modernize the way we care for our urban forest in this article from Shaker Life magazine.
• Learn about the work of City Council's Tree Advisory Board and sign up for the quarterly Tree News email newsletter.

Shaker businesses can take advantage of many (or most) of the same programs offered to residents. Here are some additional resources:

Recycling

• Learn how to start a workplace recycling program, improve an existing one, or contract for waste and recycling services at seminars offered by Cuyahoga Recycles.
• Planning an event? Sustainable Cleveland’s ZeroWasteNEO Working Group provides a variety of resources to help you make your event zero waste.

Composting

Businesses can sign up for commercial container composting service offered by Rust Belt Riders, which composts food scraps and BPI Certified products. Learn more.