Curbside Recycling
Click here to find your scheduled collection day. Tompkins County contracts for county-wide curbside recycling on an every other week basis.
Single Stream Recycling
For your convenience, you can include recyclable paper, glass, metal, and plastic containers in one bin.
Recycling is Easy:
- Collect curbside recyclables in a recycling bin at home.
- Place your recycling bin at the curb for your scheduled collection.
- Bring your empty recycling bin back inside and continue to collect recyclables.
July 2024-June 2025 Curbside Recycling Guidelines and Pick Up Schedule:
July 2025-June 2026 Curbside Recycling Guidelines and Pick Up Schedule:
What’s Accepted:
- Cardboard & mixed paper
- Clean pizza boxes, cereal boxes, newspaper, mail, magazines, office paper, and paperback books
- Glass containers
- Clear, green, and brown glass food and beverage containers
- Metal cans & foil
- Aluminum foil and pie plates, food cans, and empty aerosol cans from food and cosmetic products
- Plastic containers
- Plastics marked with a #1, 2, or 5 including yogurt cups, milk jugs, and detergent bottles. No black plastic
What’s NOT Accepted
- Batteries
- Black plastic
- Cartons, drink boxes, and frozen food packaging
- Compostable disposables
- Containers from hazardous waste
- Drinking glasses, pyrex, or coffee pots
- Electronics/appliances
- Envelopes with plastic padding
- Hangers
- Paper towels, napkins, cups, and tissues
- Plastics #3, #4, #6, #7 or unmarked
- Plastic bags or film
- PVC Pipe
- Styrofoam®
- Syringes
- Textiles/Clothing
- Trash (i.e. food, metal, wood, diapers)
Please note that additional materials, such as appliances with Freon®, batteries, electronics, fluorescent bulbs, household hazardous waste, rigid plastics, plastic bags, scrap metal, textiles, and tires can be recycled at the Recycling & Solid Waste Center, but are not accepted for curbside collection. Permits are required for some materials. Fees may apply. Click here for more information.
Recycling Bin Options
- County green recycling bin
- Bins can be purchased at the Tompkins County Recycling and Materials Management Office
- Use a recycling container of your choice
- Size: Up to 50 gallons
- Weight: Up to 40 pounds when full
To Prepare Your Recyclables
- Empty all containers and rinse out residue
- Place your recycling bin at the curb no later than 6:00 am on your scheduled collection day (4:00 in the City of Ithaca)
- Put “R” decals on both sides of your recycling bin parallel to the road so the collector can see it.
- Flatten cardboard. If it does not fit in your recycling bin, place next to the bin in stacks no more than 4’x4’x4′
- Do not put plastic bags in your recycling bin or leave items in a plastic bag for pick up. They will not be collected.
If your recycling is picked up on the same day as your trash, separate your trash set out from your recycling set out so the collector can easily see your recycling bin.
Make Sure Your Bin Gets Collected
Recycling bins with unacceptable items will receive a sticker and the contents of the bin will not be collected.
Curbside Set-Out For Businesses:
- Businesses can set out up to 200 gallons of recycled material, and no more than 2 cubic yards of flattened & stacked cardboard.
