Frequently Asked Questions about Recycling
What can I put in my curbside recycling bin?
Stick with the 6: ONLY the six types of items they have wanted for years and generally they are related to food storage containers: food and beverage cartons, glass bottles and jars, aluminum and metal cans, plastic bottles and containers, mixed paper and flattened cardboard. Items must be Empty, Clean and Dry.
Visit the St. Louis City Recycles website for current information about what can be recycled in our region in your curbside pickup. We follow these recycling guidelines at all of our events and these are the same guidelines about what is accepted in recycling for about 80% of the residents in the St. Louis 7-county region.
Newly released in 2022, visit the St. Louis County Recycle Wizard to access their database about how to dispose of all kinds of household materials properly.
The city and county are working on a unified message for recycling guidelines. The St. Louis City Recycles website has the most up-to-date info for our 7-county Missouri/Illinois region.
What can I NOT put in my curbside recycling bin?
NO plastic bags, even if full of recyclables; No Styrofoam or Paper Cups. No clothing, garden hoses, plastic utensils, zipties or food waste.
A lot of materials can technically be recycled, but not everything goes in the curbside recycling containers. Visit the St. Louis City Recycles website database for information about materials that can be recycled but should NOT be placed in the curbside containers (like plastic bags, styrofoam, batteries, etc).
Newly released in 2022, visit the St. Louis County Recycle Wizard to access their database about how to dispose of all kinds of household materials properly.
Why can't I put plastic bags in my residential single stream recycling?
Plastic bags get wrapped around the gears of the sorting equipment in the recycling facility, making them less efficient. The facility then has to shut down and have someone climb up to cut the bags away from the equipment.
The best thing for plastic bags is to save them separately, then take them to your local grocery store recycling drop off. These include any stretchy film that is clean and dry, such as bread bags, zip lock bags, produce bags, bubble wrap, etc. These do NOT include frozen food bags or saran wrap (cling wrap).
(The best thing is to say NO to the plastic bag!)
What do I do with electronics?
Most electronics can be recycled through local programs. Click here to visit our Recycling Extravaganza page to find collectors of electronic waste.
What do I do with hard to recycle materials such as metals, garden tools, & plastic bags?
A lot of waste can actually be recycled through other programs. Click here to visit our Recycling Extravaganza page to find collectors of hard to recycle materials.
What do I do with used cooking oil (like from the holiday turkey fryer)?
Used cooking oil can be taken to one of our local Household Hazardous Waste facilities. Click here for more info
What do I do with hazardous materials like latex paint, batteries, aerosol cans, & compact fluorescent bulbs?
You can take most hazardous waste to a Saint Louis Household Hazardous Waste drop off site. This website also offers alternative disposal sites. Batteries Plus, IKEA and Home Depot take CFLs and rechargeable batteries. Batteries Plus will also take regular alkaline batteries. Fees may apply for these items but it is better than throwing in the landfill where resources are lost. CFLs should be bagged in plastic for protection if broken.
Online resources to learn about recycling and composting
Local St. Louis, MO Channel Nine tour of a Materials Recovery Facility: https://www.ninenet.org/blogs/science/recycling-living-st-louis/
Rhode Island Facility Tour: click here
Cedar Grove Composting Video: click here to view how food waste and “compostable” service ware is turned into a soil amendment that supports better plant growth with less need for watering and fertilizers. Locally, St. Louis Composting provides a similar service in our St. Louis region.
What are my options for reducing residential food waste?
- There are many ways to reduce food waste: creative meal planning, making a grocery list, shopping your pantry first, storing food properly, eating leftovers, feeding animals, and learning about what sell by/use by dates really mean.
- Check out our Too Good To Waste webpage and this blog, Fight Food Waste, Fight Climate Change, to learn about the issue of food waste and its connection to climate change.
- Composting food is the last chance before landfilling and it is a fantastic way to recycle food into a new, very useful product. Learn about commercial composting from this St. Louis Composting video.
- Learn about composting at home from the EPA
- Composting Food Scraps: Learn about composting food scraps, including links to curbside composting companies. Become a member of earthday365 to get access to commercial composting for self-service drop off.
The image below is also available in Spanish, Arabic, Bosnian, and Vietnamese.
