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NYC recycling rules for cardboard in homes, apartments & businesses
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Recycling is required by law in NYC, and luckily, the NYC recycling rules make it fairly easy to get rid of your cardboard boxes! In apartment buildings, renters often collect cardboard in a paper bag or cardboard box, then drop it off at a central recycling area when it’s full. Homes, schools, and other institutions place recycling in clear bags or bins labeled with free decals, then leave it on the curb for pickup the night before their scheduled recycling collection day. We'll give you the full rundown for both situations!
NYC Cardboard Recycling Cheat Sheet
- Remove as much tape as possible from your cardboard boxes, then flatten and tie them into 18-inch (46 cm) bundles or smaller with twine for curbside pickup.
- Or, place cardboard boxes in clear, untinted plastic bags or labeled bins. If you live in an apartment, bring your boxes to your building’s central recycling area.
- Look up your recycling collection day on NYC’s sanitation page . Put your recycling on the curb in front of your building the night before, between 8 PM and midnight.
Steps
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Find your scheduled recycling collection day on NYC’s sanitation page . Type in the street address for your home, school, or business to find your collection day. Generally, recycling is picked up once a week for homes, businesses, and agencies. [1] X Research source Schools may have several days of collection during the week.
- Alternatively, download the DSNY Pickup app to check your local schedule and get reminders before each collection day.
- If you can’t find the recycling collection day for your address, dial 311 to call the Sanitation Department and get more details.
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Separate your recyclables into 2 categories. Mixed paper and cardboard go together in one category, which includes egg cartons, lightly soiled pizza boxes, smooth cardboard (such as food and shoes boxes, tubes, file folders, and cardboard from product packaging), and corrugated cardboard boxes (like moving boxes). The second category includes glass, metal, and plastic. [2] X Research source
- Paper with staples or window envelopes can be recycled with the rest of your mixed paper.
- Mixed paper also includes mail, newspapers, magazines, catalogs, phone books, paper bags, wrapping paper, and shredded and scrap paper.
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Don’t recycle boxes with food or soiled paper products inside. Check your takeout and pizza boxes for any leftover food, soft or spoiled paper, wax paper, or plastic-coated paper products. Cut away any soiled pieces before collapsing and recycling your cardboard boxes. If the cardboard is greasy or heavily-soiled, throw it away with your regular trash. [3] X Research source
- For example, to recycle a pizza box correctly, discard the soiled liner and recycle the plastic supporter with rigid plastics. [4] X Research source
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Remove all tape, then flatten and tie your cardboard into bundles. Take off as much tape as possible from your cardboard boxes and packaging. Collapse and fold large boxes or sheets of corrugated cardboard, then tie them up with twine . Bundles of flattened cardboard should be 18 inches (46 cm) tall or shorter. [5] X Research source
- Always use twine, not tape, to secure the cardboard bundles—it’s more easily recyclable and eco-friendly.
- If you don’t have twine, cut your cardboard into small pieces and place them in a clear, untinted bag or your recycling bin.
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Or, place your cardboard in clear plastic bags or labeled bins for recycling. Cut your cardboard into small pieces, then place it in a clear, untinted bag between 13 gallons (49 L) and 66 gallons (250 L), or a recycling bin that is 32 gallons (120 L) or less with green labels on both sides and the lid. Make sure your bag or bin weighs less than 60 pounds (27 kg). [6] X Research source
- Do not use cardboard boxes as bins.
- If you use a bin, make sure it’s durable, leak-proof, and has a tight-fitting lid.
- Sanitation provides decal labels for free, which you can order through their website . Use green stickers for cardboard and mixed paper, and blue stickers for metal, glass, and plastic. [7] X Research source
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Put your recycling on the curb the night before your collection day. If you’re recycling cardboard in a bin with a secured lid, place it on the curb in front of your building between 6 PM and midnight on the night before collection. If you’re using a plastic bag or tying your cardboard into bundles, place them on the curb between 8 PM and midnight. [8] X Research source
- If your scheduled collection day falls on a holiday, Sanitation will collect it the following week.
- Make sure your recycling doesn’t block the street, and only put it on the curb the night before your collection day to avoid a fine.
- There’s no limit to the amount of recyclables you can put out for collection, so stack your recycling materials as high as you need to.
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Ask your landlord about recycling rules and accessibility. By law, landlords are required to provide all tenants with clear recycling instructions and an accessible central recycling area. [9] X Research source Upon moving into the building or with each lease renewal, communicate with your landlord about updated recycling information.
- Your landlord should have flyers, brochures, checklists, information packets, or signs that show you what and where to recycle.
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Collect all your cardboard in a clear bag, paper bag, or cardboard box. Keep it in a central location, such as the kitchen or next to the front door. Use it to store all the paper and cardboard or mixed paper recycling you collect. [10] X Research source
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Bring your recycling to your building’s central recycling area and sort it. Once you’ve brought your recycling to the building’s central recycling area, make sure to put your cardboard in the right bin. Follow any signage and instructions posted in the area before dropping your bag or box of recycling materials into the directed bin. [11] X Trustworthy Source State of New York Official website for the State of New York Go to source
- Generally, recycling areas are located within the trash disposal area. If not, your landlord must post signs in the trash disposal area directing tenants to the recycling area.
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Tips
- If you think that Sanitation missed a collection, call 311 the day afterward, starting at 8 AM, to request a collection service. Regular collection schedules may be delayed because of snow storms or extreme weather, which cannot be reported as a missed collection. [12] X Trustworthy Source State of New York Official website for the State of New York Go to sourceThanks
- If you miss your recycling day, break down your cardboard boxes and place them on the curb the night before the next pickup. If you can’t wait until then, post them on Facebook Marketplace or Freecycle NYC to see if anyone wants to pick them up.Thanks
Tips from our Readers
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- Check if you can donate used moving boxes at Goodwill, Salvation Army, or local schools, libraries, or churches.
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Warning
- By law, you cannot take any items that other residents have put out for pickup. Authorized employees and agents of the Department of Sanitation (DSNY) are the only people who can collect them. [13] X Research source
References
- ↑ https://cbcny.org/research/12-things-new-yorkers-should-know-about-their-garbage
- ↑ https://portal.311.nyc.gov/article/?kanumber=KA-02013#
- ↑ https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/03/03/nyregion/ny-recycling-rules.html
- ↑ http://www1.nyc.gov/assets/dsny/site/services/recycling/what-to-recycle
- ↑ https://portal.311.nyc.gov/article/?kanumber=KA-02013#
- ↑ https://portal.311.nyc.gov/article/?kanumber=KA-02013#
- ↑ http://www1.nyc.gov/nyc-resources/service/1236/residential-recycling-stickers-signs-and-literature
- ↑ https://portal.311.nyc.gov/article/?kanumber=KA-02013#
- ↑ https://rentguidelinesboard.cityofnewyork.us/resources/faqs/owner-landlord-faq/#recycling
- ↑ https://www.rent.com/blog/how-to-recycle-when-your-apartment-complex-doesnt
- ↑ https://www.nyc.gov/assets/dsny/site/resources/recycling-and-garbage-laws/recycling-laws-for-residents
- ↑ https://www.nyc.gov/assets/dsny/site/services/recycling/residents-overview
- ↑ https://portal.311.nyc.gov/article/?kanumber=KA-02013#
About This Article
Article Summary
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Recycling your cardboard boxes in New York City is fairly easy, and you can do it with a curbside program or through your apartment building. Your landlord is required to provide you with access to a recycling bin, so if you don’t know where yours is, just ask them. Take your cardboard boxes to the recycling bin, break them down, and put them in the bin marked paper and cardboard. If you’re not sure if you can recycle something, look at the recycling guide on the nyc.gov website. If you don’t live in an apartment, you can use the curbside recycling program. Take a look at the city’s sanitation website to find when recycling is picked up on your block. Then, you’ll need to separate your recyclables into 2 different bins; one for paper products and cardboard, and one for plastic and glass. To learn how to flatten and bundle large pieces of cardboard, read on!
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