Recycling Overview

Recycling is more important today than it has ever been before. In order to keep our communities safe and clean, we all must pitch in to help recycle and reuse as much as possible. A convenient curbside recycling collection program is provided to all residential customers in Unincorporated Santa Clara County for no additional charge.

Only place recyclable materials into your blue container!

• NO Household Hazardous Waste
  (Paints, solvents, cleaners, corrosives, etc.)
• NO Electronic / Universal Waste
  (Televisions, computers, cell phones, etc.)
• NO Yard Waste
  (Grass clippings, leaves, tree and bush prunings, etc.)
• NO Garbage
  (All non-recyclable materials.)
• NO Construction Debris
  (Concrete, rocks, dirt, etc.)

Acceptable Recycling Materials Batteries Standard household batteries (D, C, AA, AAA, 9-Volt, button cells, etc. - Place in a clear, sealed plastic bag and set on top of the recycling cart.) Glass All colors of glass beverage and food containers (Please rinse and remove lids) Metal Aluminum cans Tin/steel food and beverage cans (Please rinse - Labels are okay) Motor Oil & Filters See section below for details Paper Most clean and dry household paper, such as: Cardboard (Break down boxes and bundle larger pieces securely using twine and place next to container) Computer paper Envelopes (Including plastic window types) File folders Food boxes (cereal, crackers, frozen food, etc. - Remove plastic liners) Junk mail and catalogs Magazines Newspaper Paper egg cartons Phone Books Plastic All rigid containers with recycling symbols 1-7, including: Milk and juice jugs Shampoo, detergent, and other household bottles (Please rinse and remove lids) Soft drink and water bottles Yogurt, margarine, and other food containers

Unacceptable Recycling Materials Batteries Car batteries Cell phone batteries Glass Auto window glass Ceramics, Pyrex, porcelain, or other dishware Glassware and crystal stemware (Glass drinking glasses and wine glasses) Household window glass Light bulbs or fluorescent tubes Mirrors Metal Aerosol cans Foil Paint cans or other household hazardous waste containers Pots and pans Propane/fuel tanks Scrap metal Wire hangers Paper Milk cartons and other waxed paper Paper towels, napkins and facial tissues Plates, cups, paper or cardboard contaminated with food Plastic Bubble wrap Flower pots Furniture Plastic containers without a recycling symbol Five-gallon buckets Plastic bags or wrapping Plastic hangers Plastic Utensils Shrink wrap Styrofoam/polystyrene containers Styrofoam/polystyrene packing peanuts Syringes Toys

Used Motor Oil
Used motor oil may be setout in one-gallon plastic containers with tight fitting, screw top lids only. You may place up to two one-gallon containers next to your recycling cart for pickup and empty recycled one-gallon containers will be left in their place.

Used Oil Filters
Place fully drained filters in a sealed, leak-proof, plastic bag and place next to your recycle cart. You may request one-gallon plastic containers and oil filter bags by calling customer service at (408) 392-3000 or by using our online contact form.

Proper Container Placement And Storage
Recycling, green waste and garbage containers are collected by a fully automated collection vehicle. The automated truck requires ample room to collect containers safely and effectively. For more information on container placement, please view our Proper Container Placement And Storage page.

Printable Materials
Several brochures and guides are available in PDF format and can be printed for easy reference.
For a list of available documents, please view our Printable Materials page.

For more information on our recycling program, or any other service, please contact a customer service representative by calling (408) 392-3000 or by using our online contact form.