Recycling Collection Division

Recycling Collection Division

Let's Recycle Akron!

The City of Akron offers single stream recycling, which means you can combine all of your recyclables together.  Please do not bag your recycles.  Please place them loose inside your cart for weekly collection.

To report a problem or request another cart, click the RED BUTTON or call 3-1-1 from a landline phone or (330) 375-2311 from a cell phone.

HOLIDAY DELAYS:

On the following upcoming dates, Trash and Recycling collection will not be performed. Collection will be delayed one day for the remainder of the week:

• Martin Luther King Jr. Day, January 17th
• Memorial Day, May 30th
• Independence Day, July 4th
• Labor Day, September 5th
• Thanksgiving Day, November 24th

• NOTE:  Christmas Day, December 25th, will fall on the weekend so there will be no delay for this holiday.

HOW DO I RECYCLE?

In short, bottles and jugs are the plastic items that should be placed in your recycling cart, any containers should be thrown away.  (For example, sour cream containers, butter containers, or yogurt containers.)  Any boxes that contained cooked food are waste products and cannot be recycled.  (For example, pizza boxes and chicken & Jo Jos boxes.)  Paper towels and napkins are trash and cannot be recycled.  The plastic grocery bags or trash bags are not acceptable, they can be recycled at the retailer.

Why don't we accept any item that is recyclable in nature? Because the Material Recovery Facility (MRF) that we take your recycled items to be processed only accepts the items that are listed below as acceptable. Take a brief moment to watch this video that answers this question in more detail. Thanks to NC DENR for allowing us to use:

So, here are the 5 most important rules to follow:

• Place acceptable items in your recycling cart loose...DO NOT BAG!

• Rinse the items out before placing in the cart

• Discard caps and lids into the trash

• Do not recycle plastic bags

• Do not throw medical waste, prescription bottles, needles, and syringes into the recycling (put into a used plastic laundry detergent container, tightly close the lid, and throw into the trash)

The below video is another educational tool for our curbservice customers to help Recycle the correct way.

HERE ARE ACCEPTABLE ITEMS TO RECYCLE IN YOUR CART:

• Paper products
  • Newspapers
  • Office / school papers (NON SHREDDED)
  • Junk mail
  • Phone books
  • Beer & beverage packages
  • Cereal boxes
  • Tissue boxes

• Cartons
  • Milk & juice cartons
  • Soup & broth cartons
  • Other food and beverage cartons

• Plastic products
  • Water, soda & sports drink bottles
  • Milk, iced tea, Juice containers
  • Soap, dish liquid, & laundry detergent containers

• Cardboard (please flatten cardboard)...do not bundle!

• Aluminum and metal cans:
  • Soda & beverage cans
  • Soup and vegetable cans
  • Tomato sauce cans

DO NOT PUT THE FOLLOWING ITEMS IN YOUR CART

THESE ITEMS ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE IN THE CITY OF AKRON:

**Please note: there are some items above that may be "recyclable" but are not accepted at the recycling center where we take your items.**

Recycling Items That Don't Fit Into Your Cart:

The city also "recycles" large items such as automobile tires, household appliances (refrigerators, freezers, washers, dryers, air conditioners) by collecting them weekly from your curb.

Simply place these items next to your trash and recycle carts, and we will pick them up on your normal collection day. We then take them to a local salvage company to make sure they are recycled properly and kept out of landfills.