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. These bags jam machinery at the single stream sorting facility. Many grocery stores will accept clean, dry plastic bags for recycling. It is recommended that you bring reusable bags with you when shopping to eliminate the need for plastic bags.
Learn more about plastic bags and other "tanglers."
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.
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
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).”
Acceptable Items
- Most paper, paperboard and cardboard
- "Clean" parts of pizza boxes
- Juice boxes
- Milk cartons
Unacceptable Items
- Paper items coated in wax
- Paper towels/napkins
- Shredded paper
Acceptable Items
The following items, either with any recycling "number" or no number:
- Bottles
- Jars
- Jugs
- Tubs
Unacceptable Items
- Antifreeze containers
- Motor oil containers
- Plastic bags
- Foam packaging
- Foam/clam-shell containers
Acceptable Items
- Aerosol cans (must be empty)
- Food and beverage cans
- Foil
- Pie tins
Unacceptable Items
- Pesticide cans
- Spray paint cans
Acceptable Items
- Bottles
- Jars
Acceptable Items
Rigid items made only of plastic, i.e.
- Buckets
- Flower pots
- Lawn furniture
Additional Acceptable Materials
Below are additional categories of items that can be taken to one or more of our residential drop-off centers.
Baltimore County asks residents with unwanted household electronics to:
- First, contact electronics manufacturers or retailers to inquire about an electronics take-back or recycling program. Some may have convenient programs for recycling electronics that are free or low-cost.
- View information about electronics recycling from the Maryland Department of the Environment, including a list of registered electronics manufacturers.
- Donate unwanted electronics to a charity or reuse organization. Be sure to contact the organization first to ensure that the material they plan to donate will be accepted. For contact information, consult the Baltimore County Reuse Directory.
Accepted Household Electronics
Baltimore County residents may also drop off the following household electronics for recycling at all three County drop-off facilities:
- Answering machines
- Appliances (small appliances such as coffee makers, electric mixers, electric blenders (no glass blender containers), toasters and counter top microwaves)
- Audio equipment
- Cables, cords and communication wires
- Cable satellite boxes
- Calculators
- Cameras (including video and surveillance)
- Cassette players (including recorders or MP3 players)
- Cell or landline phones
- Central Processing Units (CPUs), laptops and servers
- Clocks
- Computer accessories and peripherals (including mice, keyboards, power supplies, scanners and printers)
- Computer discs and DVDs, CDs and Blu-ray discs
- Computer parts (including circuit boards, chips, cards and hard drives)
- Copiers
- Drones
- Electronic cards (including gift cards, debit cards and credit cards)
- Electronic generators (i.e. solar panel accessories and light fixtures)
- Electronic lawnmowers
- Electronic scooters and bikes
- Electronic toys (including video game consoles)
- Fax machines
- GPS (including radar detectors)
- Hair styling tools (including curlers, straighteners and blow dryers)
- Hard drives
- Headphones and wireless technology (such as Bluetooth)
- Holiday string lights
- Home security systems
- Music playing devices
- Projectors
- Remotes
- Servers
- Smart devices (including light controllers and garage controllers)
- Smartwatches and fitness trackers
- Stereos and radios
- Tablets and e-readers
- Televisions and monitors
- Thermostats (digital or older manual models)
- Tools (small handheld)
- Typewriters
- USB thumb drives
- Vacuums (small handheld or robotic)
- VCR, DVR, DVD or Blu-ray players
- VHS tapes
Note: No business or institutional materials will be accepted.
Baltimore County residents may drop off the following textiles for recycling at all three County residential drop-off centers. Items can be in any condition (torn, worn, stained, broken zippers, etc.), as long as they are clean, dry and odorless. Textiles are not accepted in curbside recycling.
- Accessories (including bathrobes, belts, gloves, hats, jewelry, ties, and scarves)
- Bags (including backpacks, duffle bags, pocketbooks/purses and totes)
- Clothing (including baby clothing, bras, coats, dresses, jackets, jeans, pajamas, pants, shorts, socks, skirts, slips, suits, sweaters, sweatshirts, tops and underwear)
- Footwear (including boots, cleats, flats, flip flops, heels, slippers, and sneakers)
- Linens (including aprons, blankets, cloth napkins, comforters, curtains and drapes, dish cloths, quilts, sheets and pillowcases, and table linens)
- Other (including luggage, sports jerseys and stuffed animals)
The Maryland Department of Aging is providing durable medical equipment (DME) to Marylanders with any illness, injury, or disability, regardless of age, at no cost. All equipment is collected via donation and is sanitized, repaired and redistributed to Marylanders in need.
Durable Medical Equipment can be taken to the Central Acceptance Facility in Cockeysville only.
Visit Maryland Department of Aging Durable Medical Equipment Reuse to learn more about this program and see what items are acceptable.
Effects of Plastic Bags and Other "Tanglers"
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 equipment at the Materials Recovery Facility. These items bring the whole operation to a full stop, which wastes time and money, 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.
Visit abagslife.com or plasticfilmrecycling.org to find local retailers that will accept plastic bags for recycling.