Accepted Materials

What to Recycle

1. Accepted Items

   Plastic Containers Empty, rinse, & replace caps/lids	Plastic Containers #1, #2, & #5 Plastic bottles & jugs Water, soda, and juice bottles Milk and detergent jugs Shampoo, soap, & lotion bottles Plastic cups & containers Yogurt, pudding, & fruit cups Margarine, cottage cheese, & other food tubs Hard-plastic produce & take-out containers
   Metal Empty & rinse	Food & beverage cans Aluminum foil & trays Decorative tins & pie tins Empty aerosol cans
   Glass Empty, rinse, & remove caps/lids	Food & beverage bottles & jars
   Cartons Empty, rinse, replace caps/lids	Soup, broth, & wine cartons Milk cartons Juice boxes
   Paper Keep dry & flat	Office & school papers Newspapers & inserts Magazines, mail, & phone books
   Boxes Empty & flatten	Cardboard Delivery pizza boxes Cereal, cracker, shoe, & gift boxes Toiletry boxes

2. Not Accepted- Common Questions

   	No plastic bags or film No plastic identified with #3, #4, #6, or #7 No containers lager than 3 gallons No Black Plastic No large storage bins, laundry baskets, or toys
   	No tanglers (hoses, cords, or string lights) No electronics No batteries
   	No food or liquids No compostable materials No shredded paper
   	No styrofoam or paper to-go containers No styrofoam or paper to-go cups No dishes or cookware No egg cartons (paper or styrofoam)
   	No batteries or electronics No light bulbs No helium or fuel tanks No scrap metal
   	No sharp objects/needles No hazardous waste No containers that held hazardous materials No old medicine

3. Not Accepted- Additional Items

   

   Cloth:

   Clothing, linens, and textiles are no longer accepted in the residential collection program. Do not place clothing/textiles in or next to your recycling cart. For donation opportunities, visit the Ramsey County Reuse and Donation page.

    

    

    

    

    

    

   

   Shredded Paper:

   Shredded paper is no longer accepted in the residential recycling program. When placed in your recycling cart, shredded paper most often does not get recycled due to its very small size and can be a contaminant for other materials in the recycling process. Keep your paper shredding to a minimum. Paper for shredding is typically accepted at our Citywide Drop off Events. You can also refer to the Ramsey County AtoZ Recycling and Disposal Guide for disposal options.

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

   

   Election Signs:

   Please don't put any campaign signs (typically made of corrugated plastic) in your City of Saint Paul recycling cart. They cannot be recycled. Check with the group that distributed the signs to see if they are collecting these signs after the election to be re-used.

   As a resident, these signs may be kept for future use, for an adapted use, or discarded as waste in your garbage cart.

   Don't forget to separate the metal stakes from the signs, and recycle these with a metal recycler at www.ramseycounty.us/content/scrap-metal

    

    

    

    

   

   Scrap Metal:

   Just because something is metal, doesn't mean it goes into the recycling cart. Miscellaneous scrap metal pieces, like hangers, pipe, nails, shelving, trim, and other similar items, cause LOTS of damage to sorting equipment at Material Recycling Facilities. These items can also be a hazard to employees working the line, for example leaky propane cylinders may explode or cause fires. 

   ONLY metal cans and bottles go into the recycling cart.

   Recycle scrap metal by dropping it off at a metal recycling business.