recycling collection Schedule

All recycling carts need to be placed at the curb by 7:00 a.m. on your scheduled collection day or the night before. Don’t forget to remove your carts from the curb before midnight of your collection day. Please confine your dog(s) or other pets on collection day (for our crew and your pet’s safety).

Collection schedules vary by neighborhood for both refuse and recycling. Except for collection dates occurring on City holidays, recycling is normally collected on your scheduled day.

Not sure which neighborhood you’re in? Use this handy map to locate your address and learn all about your collection schedule and more!

Recycling Carts

Blue recycling carts are provided at no cost to all City residents that participate in the City’s recycling collection program. Residents have a choice of a 95-gallon, 65-gallon, or 35-gallon cart.

Need to replace a broken cart? As long as it wasn’t destroyed or became unusable due to negligence (be kind to your carts), the City will replace at no cost to you. Damaged or broken lids can be replaced as well. Keep your carts clean – dirty carts will not be replaced.

Want to upgrade to a larger cart or switch to a smaller one? For this or other recycling cart issues, please contact the City’s Department of Public Works.

What is Accepted & not accepted for curbside Recycling Collection?

	Accepted Recycling Items	Not Accepted Recycling Items
GLASS	Glass jars and bottles for food and beverage items (beverage bottles, jars for jam, olives, pasta sauce)	Broken glass Baking and cooking dishes (Pyrex, casserole dishes, mixing bowls) Ceramic mugs and drinking glasses Light bulbs Windowpanes and mirrors
metal	Aluminum foil (clean) Aluminum, bimetal, ferrous, steel food and beverage containers (soda, soup, pet food, etc.) Empty aerosol cans (whipped cream, shaving cream) Single use aluminum baking pans (clean)	Auto parts Containers from gasoline, oil, herbicide or pesticide Loose metal: clothes hangers, hardware, paper clips, etc. Pots and pans Pressurized tanks (propane, helium)
paper	All paper Milk and juice cartons Cardboard boxes (broken down/flattened) Frozen food packaging Hard and soft-covered books Paper bags and wrapping paper (non-metallic) Magazines, catalogs and phone books Newspapers with inserts Paper board (cereal boxes) Shredded paper (must be in a sealed/stapled paper bag and labeled shredded paper) Oversized cardboard can be broken down to fit in your cart, or tie with string and stack neatly next to your cart.	Carbon copy paper Overly greasy pizza boxes Laminated paper Metallic gift wrap Napkins, tissues or paper towels Photographic paper Loose shredded paper Wax paper Do not include any paper that has been contaminated by grease or food.
plastic	Plastic containers # 1, 2, 3, 5 Narrow neck containers (milk, water, soda, shampoo, ketchup etc.) Wide mouth containers (peanut butter, yogurt, cottage cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, margarine/butter tubs, clamshell containers for fruit, and laundry detergent) Flower pots and prescription bottles	Plastic bags, film, cling wrap and bubble wrap Candy wrappers, chip or snack bags Cutlery and utensils Hazardous containers (paint, herbicides, pesticides, poison or motor oil bottles) Six pack rings CD jewel cases VHS cases Polystyrene/Styrofoam (packing material, foam cups, plates, and takeout containers)

RECYCLING TIPS

EMPTY - CLEAN - DRY

Clean and rinse out your food containers – too much food contamination or food scraps can contaminate the entire load of recycling causing it all to go to the landfill. If that pizza box is looking a bit too greasy, then it’s best to throw it out.

Caps, lids, tabs, and labels can be left on. Place recyclables loosely in your blue recycling cart.

No electronics. However, City of College Park residents can bring up to 3 electronics for recycling to a temporary drop-off box near the entrance of the front doors to Davis Hall. Proof of residency is required.

Plastic bags from grocery stores cannot be accepted in the curbside recycling program as they get caught and and can damage equipment at the recycling facility. However, these shopping bags can be recycled at local stores. Your recycling will not be accepted if plastic shopping bags are found in your carts.

Cars & Vehicles
Cars and other vehicles (boats, motorcycles, RVs) can be recycled! Plus they don’t need to be in running condition either. For details including charities that will take them, please visit the MD Motor Vehicle Administration’s page here.

Batteries (single-use & rechargable) AAA, AA, C, D, 9-Volt
Rechargable batteries can be brought to Home Depot.
Alkaline and rechargable batteries can be recycled at MOMs Organic Market and IKEA in College Park. Batteries can also be brought to the Prince George’s County Brown Station Landfill on Hazardous Waste days (Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays from 8:00 am - 3:30 pm) 11611 White House Road, Upper Marlboro, MD 20772.

Click here for a short video to "Avoid the Spark" a campaign by Call2Recycle.

Car Batteries
Some auto-parts stores will provide free recycling when you buy a replacement battery. Car batteries can also be recycled at the Prince George’s County Brown Station Landfill on Hazardous Waste days (Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays from 8:00 am - 3:30 pm) 11611 White House Road, Upper Marlboro, MD 20772

Books (in good condition)
Prince George’s County Libraries have a drop off collection box at most branches. Various charities will also accept books (paperback and hardcover) in good condition.

Construction & Building Materials
Lumber and trim, bricks, masonry materials, cabinets, doors, tiles, tools, hardware and more can be taken to Community Forklift and Habitat for Humanity ReStore.

Clothing & Household Goods
Clothing, bedding and linens, kitchenware, small appliances, bicycles, books, toys, furniture and more can be donated and later reused at most area thrift stores. Clothing and shoes can be dropped off at any Planet Aid box located throughout the City.

Electronic Recycling - other options

Amazon Locker facility at Guilford Drive and Hartwick Road in College Park has a drop off bin for small electronics. Accepted material include: Laptops, cell phones, tablets, e-readers, audio visual devices, media players, cameras, thumb drives, and connected home devices.
Best Buy Electronic Recycling: Residents can drop off up to 3 items, most are free, but TVs and Monitors cost $25 . What they accept: TV’s and Video, Computers and Tablets, Cell Phones and Radios, Vacuums, Fans, Audio and E-readers, Video games and Gadgets, Cameras and Camcorders, Car Audio, Video and GPS.

Eyeglasses
Eyeglasses can be recycled through the Lions Club Recycle for Sight program at MOMs Organic Market and there is a drop off box in the lobby of Davis Hall.

Lights
EPA recommends that consumers take advantage of available local options for recycling CFLs, fluorescent bulbs and other bulbs that contain mercury, and all other household hazardous wastes, rather than disposing of them in regular household trash.

Compact fluorescent lights (CFL) can be dropped off at Home Depot, Lowe’s and IKEA.
Christmas Lights can be taken to MOMs Organic Market during December and January.
Fluorescent light tubes can be brought to Battery Plus in Laurel or to the Prince George’s County Brown Station Landfill on Hazardous Waste days (Thursdayd, Fridays, and Saturdays from 8:00 am - 3:30 pm) 11611 White House Road, Upper Marlboro, MD 20772

Medicine (unused or expired)
Bring all unused, expired or unwanted medicines to the College Park State Police Barrack Q at 10100 Rhode Island Avenue in College Park (call 301.345.3101 with any questions). The University of Maryland’s Police Department has occasional medicine drop off dates, please visit their website for more information.

Metal Clothes Hangers
These hangers can be dropped off at ZIPS Dry Cleaners.

Paint

LATEX PAINT

Residents should dry out latex paint and stains and put it in the garbage with the lid off, using one of several methods:

Cat litter:

Mix latex paint with an equal amount of clay-based cat litter
Stir in completely and let the paint dry. It takes about 10 minutes for the cat litter to harden.
Add more cat litter if the paint is soft or runny after 10 minutes. Repeat until the material is very thick.
Sawdust, dirt, and shredded paper can be tried as alternatives to cat litter.
If there is not enough room in the paint can to stir in enough cat litter to dry it all out, pour off paint into any plastic or cardboard container that is large enough to hold the material, including a yogurt container, plastic tub, shoebox, or other convenient container.

Paint hardener:

Mix latex paint or stain with commercial paint hardener according to the directions.
At the end of that time, paint will have a tacky, oatmeal-like consistency that will not spill out.

Other ideas of using up latex paint or stains:

Use the paint when painting a garage, dog house or use as a primer coat for another painting project.
Donate excess paint to a school, theater group or non-profit agency.

Be sure it’s latex paint or stain! Look on the label for the word “latex,” or for directions to clean up or thin with water. Once the latex paint has hardened or solidified, place the can with the lid off in your trash cart. The trash crew needs to see that the paint has been solidified.

OIL BASED PAINT

Oil-based paint is defined as a household hazardous waste and need to be brought to the Brown Station Landfill on hazardous waste days (Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 8am-3:30 pm) 11611 White House Road, Upper Marlboro, MD 20772 for proper disposal.

Pet Food & Supplies
Canned or dry pet food, and pet gear (carriers, crates, toys, towels, leashes, etc.) in good condition may be taken to Davis Hall/Department of Public Works (9217 51st Ave) for use by the City’s Animal Welfare Committee.

Plastic Bags
Clean and dry plastic grocery bags, plastic wrap, bubble wrap and dry cleaning bags can be taken to local grocery stores, Best Buy, Target and IKEA for recycling.

Printer Ink Cartridges
Inkjet printers and toner cartridges can be taken to Best Buy, MOMs Organic Market, Staples and Target for recycling.

Styrofoam & Packaging
Packaging materials including Styrofoam peanuts and bubble wrap can be taken to UPS stores.

Block Styrofoam from packaging or coolers are accepted at Alliance of Foam Packaging Recyclers - they have a large bin for drop offs.

FYI

Did you know, if you’re hosting a special event or function the City can loan blue recycling carts to use at the event? The Department of Public Works will coordinate pickup and drop-off of the containers and recyclables following the event. Contact the Department of Public Works for more information.

The City offers Behind the House Pickups for refuse and recycling collections to households where no one is physically able to move the carts to and from the curb. A completed application and doctors note must be filed with the City’s Department of Public Works. Contact the Department for further information.

Still not understanding how to recycle in the City? Contact the City’s Sustainability Coordinator for help, tips or tutorials!

recycling collection Schedule

Neighborhood Schedule

Recycling Carts

Recycling in the City

What is Accepted & not accepted for curbside Recycling Collection?

Accepted Recycling Items

Not Accepted Recycling Items

GLASS

metal

paper

plastic

RECYCLING TIPS

Other Recycling and Reuse Opportunities

FYI

America recycles day