In the County’s single stream recycling program, all acceptable recyclables may be mixed together in the same container for collection.
- Residents of single-family homes—View your collection schedule and set-out guide to learn how to place recyclables out for collection.
- Residents of apartments and condominiums—Check with your property manager for details on how recycling collection works in your community.
TYPES OF MATERIALS
Below are the basic five categories of materials accepted in Baltimore County’s single stream recycling program. By focusing on these common and often valuable materials, you're helping the environment and the County's bottom line.
If an item does not belong in any of these categories, or if you’re not sure, you can help to minimize recycling contamination by following this rule—"when in doubt, throw it out (in the trash).”
Important Note: In most cases, food and beverage containers, such as bottles and cans, have to be lightly rinsed prior to recycling. Just make sure that any excess product is removed by dumping it out and scraping off the sides, if necessary. For example, if you have a peanut butter jar, you want to make sure that it is empty and clean to avoid food contamination.
ADDITIONAL ACCEPTABLE MATERIALS
Below are additional categories of items that can be taken to one or more of our residential drop-off centers.
ACCEPTABLE CONTAINERS
The County currently does not provide recycling containers. Learn about the variety of acceptable recycling containers.
Baltimore County has made stickers available for residents that may be affixed to containers as another way to designate that the containers are being used exclusively for recycling. These stickers are not in any way required to participate in the single stream recycling program. Stickers for recycling containers are available free of charge at the following locations:
- Baltimore County public libraries—We encourage residents to call ahead to a library before visiting to ensure that they have a supply of container stickers.
- Baltimore County’s three trash and recycling drop-off centers.
- Contact or visit our Solid Waste Management office.
EFFECTS OF PLASTIC BAGS AND OTHER "TANGLERS"
Plastic bags—even if marked recyclable—are not accepted in the County's recycling program. Plastic bags of any type must not be used to set out recyclables for collection. It is recommended that you bring reusable bags with you when shopping to eliminate the need for plastic bags.
Malfunctions can occur when plastic bags and other "tanglers"—long or stretchy items, such as plastic bags, clothing, linens, rope, electrical cords and chains—get caught in the processing equipment at the Materials Recovery Facility and require maintenance. These items bring the whole operation to a full stop, wastes time and money, creates inefficiencies for processing all the recyclables and endangers workers. Even if a plastic bag is marketed as "for recycling," "recyclable" or "compostable," it is not acceptable as a recycling container in Baltimore County.
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Materials Are Taken to an MRF
The materials are taken to an MRF.
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Materials Are Washed and Sorted
The recycled materials undergo a thorough washing while being sorted for manufacturing.
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Materials Are Sold to Manufacturers to Make New Items
This reduces the need to use natural resources and keeps the materials out of the landfill.