County of San Diego Mandatory Recycling Requirement

Effective July 1, 2021, the County of San Diego required all single-family households, businesses, and multi-family complexes to recycle. This recycling effort targets single-stream recycling, where all recyclable materials are mixed together. The County passed a new ordinance that amended the Solid Waste Regulatory Code relating to solid waste and recycling collection. This amendment to the code now requires all residential and commercial generators to have recycling services.

Click here for information regarding the County of San Diego’s recycling requirements for single-family residences and multi-family complexes.

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Recycling is Easy with EDCO!

EDCO offers recycling programs that allow your tenants to collect a variety of recyclable materials. To ensure program success, your Service Representative can provide bilingual educational materials to support your program.

Here’s What You Can Recycle

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Please DO NOT recycle:
Paper Plates Paper Cups Paper Towels Plastic Bags Ceramics Drinking Glasses Mirrors	Tissue Carbon Paper Plastic Bags (NO plastic grocery sacks or newspaper delivery bags) Disposable Cups/Plates PVC Pipe Vinyl Siding Styrofoam Packing Peanuts

AB 341 and the County of San Diego Solid Waste Ordinance

AB 341 and the County of San Diego Solid Waste Ordinance require that businesses and public entities that have trash service levels of four cubic yards or greater or multi-family units with four or more units shall arrange for recycling service. Hospitality businesses (those that sell food or drinks, either to-go or to be consumed on-premise) are required to recycle regardless of the service level.

You may also donate or sell your recyclable material; however, if you do not use a county-approved franchise hauler for recycling service, you must provide the County with proof that you are participating in a recycling program. Please contact the County’s Recycling Section at (858) 694-2463 for details. County of San Diego Solid Waste Ordinance (Section 68.571) requires that residents and businesses shall only place designated recyclables in a recycling container and keep them separate from trash.

Global Recycling Crisis Puts Greater Focus on Recycling Contamination

Global concerns over recyclable material quality have increased over the years, and these expectations are not going away.

In January 2018, China will no longer accept 26 types of recyclable materials into their country. Nearly 60% of recyclable materials generated in California are currently exported to China and other Asian markets. As a result, processing mills worldwide demand that recycling facilities ship only recyclables with less than one percent contamination, a significant change in material requirement standards. A minimal amount of contamination, such as garbage, green waste, or other debris, can ruin a complete load of recyclable material. The quality of recyclable material can impact your costs should contamination require recycling to be dumped as trash.

Please help us prevent and reduce recyclable material contamination by reviewing EDCO’s guidelines and acceptable items in our residential recycling program.

Additional Recycling Resources

Additional recycling resources, including videos, guides, and mandates, can be found in our Resource Center.