Recycling

We're pretty good at recycling, and like the rest of New York City, we can all recycle a little bit better.

 

Metal, glass, plastic, and cartons

You can recycle metal, glass jars and bottles, rigid plastics (the recycling number on the package doesn’t matter), and beverage cartons together in labeled bin with a secure lid or a clear plastic bag.

NOTE: Empty, rinsed containers are easier to process and less attractive to rodents and roaches

Mixed paper and carboard

You can recycle mixed paper together in a labeled bin with a secure lid or a clear plastic bag. Bundle cardboard (flatten and tie with twine) and set out next to bins or bags.

Food Scraps – Separate your food scraps and put them in the brown bin in the trash and recycling room.

Anything that grows goes in the brown bin including fruit and vegetable scraps, meat, dairy & food soiled paper.Find out more

Electronics Recycling – Electronics contribute 70% of the toxicity to landfills, therefore it is against New York State law to discard electronics with regular trash.

The most convenient place to recycle electronics is Cage 13 in The Mildred's basement storage room. They will be collected and recycled by Electronics Recyclers International which operates under contract with ecycleNYC to recycle residential electronics.

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Accepted electronics include:

  • TVs
  • VCRs, DVRs, and DVD players
  • Cable and satellite boxes
  • Video game consoles
  • Computers: including small servers; monitors; laptops and their peripherals (such as keyboards, hard drives, mice, etc.)
  • Printers/scanners
  • Fax machines
  • Small electronics: including tablets; mobile phones; MP3 players

NOTE: Appliances, batteries, and light bulbs are NOT accepted by the ecycleNYC program.

Clothing and Textiles: Grand Army Plaza Greenmarket (Up the park road) Every Saturday from 8am-2pm

Paint – Leftover oil and water based paint can be recycled at many locaions throughout New York:

Mazone Ace Hardware -   476 Bergen St at Flatbush Ave. (718) 560-3022

Big Reuse  1 12 Street Brooklyn, (Behind Lowes) (718) 725-8925

Sherwin-Williams -5th avenue and 15th Street  (718) 369-0819

Hours: Paint is accepted during regular business hours. Call ahead for hours and to make sure the store can accept the amount and type of paint you would like to recycle.

Information: Limit: 5 Gallons per visit. This site accepts latex and oil-based house paint, stains and varnish in containers up to 5 gallons in size. This site does not accept aerosols (spray paint or other spray products), containers without original labels, or containers that are leaking or empty.

Find more drop-off locations at PaintCare.org

Recycling Decals

Order the recycling literature and decals that you need to participate in the New York City Recycling Program from the New York City Department of Sanitation.

Air Conditioners, Refrigerators, Freezers, Dehumidifiers & Water Coolers - Visit the New York City Department of Sanitation or call 311 to arrange for recycling of appliances that contain Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)

Car Batteries can be taken back to any garage or retailer that sells car batteries.

Cell/Mobile Phones - All wireless telephone service providers that offer phones for sale are required to accept up to 10 working or broken cell phones for recycling.

Batteries Rechargeable batteries can be recycled at any store that sells rechargeable batteries. It's the law! Interstate Battery at 161 25th St, Brooklyn collects all types of batteries. Open Monday -Frday 7-4:30 718-965-9882

Compact Fluorescent bulbs and Rechargeable Batteries - can be recycled at Lowes and Home Depot and Ikea.

Fire Extinguishers (details)

Latex Paint, batteries, motor oil, motor oil filters, transmission fluid, fluorescent tubes & bulbs, mercury thermometers, thermostats and passenger car tires can be dropped off at . The Department of Sanitation's Household Special Waste Drop off is open three Saturdays and one Friday each month.

SAFE Events The New York City Department of Sanitation hosts annual SAFE (Solvents, Automotive, Flammables, and Electronics) Disposal Events to help residents safely dispose of harmful household products.

Find out how to get rid of of things that you dont know how to get rid of.

Thermostats, Thermometers, and other Mercury Containing Devices: Because Mercury is a powerful carcinogen, it is illegal to discard consumer products that contain mercury in the trash or recycling.

Monofiliment Recycling Fishing Line is bad for fish

Plastic Bagsl are not recyclable in the New York City Recycling Program but stoers like Target, Lowes, and Union Market at 342 Flatbush Avenue collect them for recycling.

 

More Resources:

Take a guided tour of the Recycling Education Center at Sims Municipal Recycling in Sunset Park, Brooklyn and see what happens to the metal, glass, plastic, and beverage cartons that you put in your blue bin.

Take a guided tour of the future Freshkills Park  and see where New Yorkers deposited waste for fifty years.

Tour the Newtown Creek Waste Water Treatment Plant in Greenpoint, Brooklyn and learn about what happens to the the1 billion gallons of water that New Yorkers use each day.

Thank You for Recycling!

If garbage or recycling remain uncollected at 8 AM the day after our service day, you can make an online complaint or call 311.