Choose a category from the list below. With a few exceptions, noted with the category, things in each category are collected together in one drop-off container. Each category description includes which drop-sites have a bin for the material.

• #1 and #2 Plastic Bottles, Jugs, and Jars
• Antifreeze
• Appliances, Large
• Appliances, Small
• Batteries
• Cans, Foil, and Foil Trays
• Cardboard Plus
• Clothing and Textiles
• Electronics
• Fluorescent Light Bulbs
• Glass Bottles and Jars
• Large Appliances
• Motor Oil Plus
• Newspaper Plus
• Office Paper Plus
• Rubble
• Scrap Metal
• Shoes and Work Boots
• Small, Appliances
• Tires
• Wood
• Contact Us

• #1 PETE (Poly-Ethylene Terephthalate) Bottles and Jars.
  Examples of these include water, juice, ketchup, and salad dressing bottles.
• #2 HDPE (High Density Polyethylene) Bottles and Jugs.
  Samples of these include mild and detergent jugs and medicine bottles.

Accepted together in the same bin at the drop-sites.

• No brown #1 bottles
• No #1 bakery/deli/take out trays*
• No #1 clamshell packages (clear plastic packages designed for stores to hang smaller items on display racks, i.e. small electronics, curling irons, nuts and bolts)*
• No #2 bottles or jugs that contained hazardous material (i.e. motor oil, pesticides)*
• No #2 tubs (margarine, yogurt, cottage cheese)*
• No #2 bags *
• No #2 plant pots
• No #3 (Vinyl or Polyvinyl Chloride)
• No #4 (Low Density Polyethylene)
• No #5 (Polypropylene)
• No #6 (Polystyrene)
• No #7 (all other resins and packages make with layers of multiple materials)
• No plastic items labeled "compatible with #2"
• No other plastic items (bags, tarps, toys, furniture, etc)
• No styrofoam

*While they're labeled with the number, they are made from formulations of PETE and HDPE that are compatible with the formulations used in bottles, jugs, and jars.

Details Look on the bottom or lower edge of the bottle, jug, or jar for the number enclosed in a triangle formed by three arrows. Put the lids in the garbage Rinse and flatten There's no need to remove labels

• Automobile Batteries
• Household Batteries (including rechargeable)
• Other Batteries

• in Alanson at W.W. Fairbairn & Sons
• in Harbor Springs at Meyer Ace Hardware and Preston Feather Building Center,
• in Pellston at Cook's Hardware, and
• in Petoskey at Meyer Ace Hardware and Radio Shack.

• Steel/Tin Cans
• Aluminum Cans

PLUS
• Aluminum Foil
• Foil Trays
• Metal lids

All accepted together in the same drop-site bin.

• No aerosol cans
• No gas cylinders (propane, helium, oxygen, etc)
• No paint cans
• No propane tanks
• No scrap metal
• No wire hangers

• Please rinse items
• Foil doesn't have to be perfectly clean, but shouldn't have pieces of food remaining on it.
• Remove labels
• Flatten as much as possible

• Corrugated cardboard

PLUS
• Boxboard (for example cereal boxes, the tubes from rolls of paper towels, and boxes medicines come in).
• Brown Paper Bags

• No boxes from foods and drinks you chill or freeze (for example butter, ice cream, pop, and beer). They're not recyclable because, in order to hold up in coolers and freezers, they must be treated to resist moisture. This makes them resistant to the recycling process in which water is used to breakdown cardboard into fibers.
• No construction paper
• No padded envelopes
• No plastic bags
• No Styrofoam
• No waxed boxes (Stores and restaurants receive produce in these.)

• Flatten the boxes
• Remove plastic bags, Styrofoam and other packing materials
• It works well to stuff smaller boxboard into larger boxes (for example into a large cereal box) then recycle the whole thing when it's full.
• Both gray and white boxboard are okay.
• Glossy printing on the boxes is not a problem.
• You don't have to remove tape or staples.

• Size: To be accepted curbside, cardboard must be small enough to fit entirely in a brown paper grocery bag. Larger boxes are accepted at the drop sites listed below and at the Drop-off Center*.
• Quantity: Businesses and institutions which regularly generate larger quantities of cardboard can recycle it either at the drop-sites listed below, at the Drop-off Center*, or by setting up collection service through any of the waste haulers serving Emmet County (specify separate collection for recycling). Call 231-348-0640 for our brochure on cardboard recycling for businesses.

• Clothing
• Bedding

• No fabric scraps
• No insulated coats
• No rags

• Clothing and bedding should be clean, dry, and in plastic bags.
• Please do not remove buttons or zippers.

• Computers
• Computer peripherals (monitors, printers, key boards, mice, etc.)
• Telephones and their accessories (fax machines, answering machines, etc.)
• TVs and their accessories (VCR's, DVD players, video games consoles, etc.)
• Copiers

• $2.00 minimum charge covers any item up to the size of a typical computer monitor, including small TVs, computers (CPUs, laptops), VCR's, fax machines, telephones and the like.
• There are three price categories for larger items:
• $4.00 for 18-27 inch TVs and items of a similar, size,
• $6.00 for 28-42 inch TVs and items of similar size, and
• $8.00 for flat-screen TVs over 42", console TVs, and items of a similar size.

Examples of other large electronic items include full-size office copiers and large institutional computer equipment.

• Halogen light bulbs
• Incandescent light bulbs (the ordinary household kind)

• Fluorescent light bulbs are accepted for recycling because they contain mercury (a very potent neurotoxin and environmental pollutant).
• Avoid breaking the bulbs. The mercury inside the tube can escape when the bulb is broken.
• Businesses will be charged to recycle bulbs. Call 348-0640 for rates and packing information.

• Brown glass bottles and jars
• Clear glass bottles and jars
Green glass bottles and jars

• No drinking glasses
• No glass dishes
• No glass pots or pans
• No light bulbs (Fluorescent Light Bulbs are recyclable but not with glass)
• No window glass

• Please rinse them
• Sort by color
• Blue glass can be recycled with green

• Metal appliances, for example stoves, water heaters, washers, and refrigerators

• Largely plastic items

• Have your load checked by the Attendant before unloading.
• There is a $5 per item handling fee for large appliances (for example stoves, washers refrigerators, water heaters)
• Refrigerators and freezers must have the refrigerant ("freon") removed by a licensed individual. We can provide this service for an additional $25. See the Scrap Metal section if you have an air conditioner or dehumidifier to recycle.

• Motor Oil

PLUS

• Automatic Transmission Fluid
• Diesel Fuel
• Fuel Oil
• Hydraulic Fluid
• Lube Oils

• Newspapers

PLUS
• Magazines and Catalogs
,
• Books, and
• Phone Books

• No construction paper
• No newspapers which have gotten wet
• No office paper items (see Office Paper Plus)
• No wrapping paper
• No yellowed newspapers

• You can use brown paper bags to bundle Newspaper Plus. But if you have a bundle of brown paper bags to recycle, they go with the Cardboard Plus.
• If you have more than a dozen books, please bring them to the Recycling Center and give them to the attendant at the Transfer Station Drive Through.

• Office Paper (copier, computer printer, letterhead)

PLUS
• Junk Mail
• Envelopes
• File Folders

• No boldly colored office paper (for example red, hot pink, bright yellow, and neon colors).
• No bound documents
• No construction paper
• No greeting/holiday/birthday cards
• No kraft envelopes (sometimes mistakenly called "manila" envelopes; they're a golden-brown color)
• No padded envelopes
• No wrapping paper

• Pale/pastel-colored office paper is okay to recycle.
• If junk mail feels like it has a CD, credit card, or other non-paper items in the envelope, please open it and remove these before recycling it.
• Envelopes with plastic windows are okay: there's no need to remove the plastic.
• There's no need to remove the following: mailing labels, paper clips, staples, stickers, sticky notes, tape.

• Asphalt
• Bricks
• Concrete
• Concrete Block
• Rocks

Accepted together in the same bin.

• Rubble painted with lead paint
• Asbestos

• $10/cubic yard fee
• Have your load checked by the Attendant before unloading.
• Rebar and wire mesh are okay.

• All kinds of stuff made from metal, for example shelving, grills, lawnmowers, pipes, hangers, ducts, tins, bikes, radiators, lawn furniture.
• Aluminum
• Brass
• Cast Iron
• Copper
• Steel
• Other metals

• No vehicle gas tanks
• Hazardous metals. If you have lead or mercury call 231-348-0660 for information on recycling or disposing of these.

• Please drain any fluids from items before dropping them off for recycling (for example gas and oil from a lawn mower). To dispose of the fluids contact our Household Chemical Drop-off program at 231-348-0660.
• To recycle an air conditioner or dehumidifier, the refrigerant must first be removed by a licensed individual. We can provide this service for $25. (For refrigerators and freezers see the Large Appliances section.
• Have your load checked by the Transfer Station Attendant before unloading.

• Shoes
• Hiking Boots
• Light Boots
• Work Boots

Accepted together in the same cart.

• No clogs
• No high heels (over two inches)
• No jelly shoes
• No skates (iced, in-line, or roller)
• No ski boots
• No slippers
• No water shoes
• No winter boots

• It's okay if they're just in fair condition.
• Keep each pair together with a rubber band.

• Small appliances primarily made of METAL. These go in the Scrap Metal bin at the Drop-off Center.
• Small appliances primarily made of PLASTIC. These are collected in the Electronics Shed at the Drop-off Center.

• Please throw away replaceable, removable parts not made of plastic or metal, for example vacuum cleaner bags, vaporizer wicks, coffee-maker carafes, and microwaves turntables.

• Televisions, computers, telephones and all the accessories that attach to them (DVD players, video games, printers, monitors, fax machines, etc.) contain more hazardous materials and are recycled separately. See "Electronics" section of this page.
• There is NO CHARGE to recycle small appliances, except...
• Air conditioners, dehumidifiers and small refrigerators and freezers contain refrigerant. The refrigerant (often called "freon") must be removed by a licensed individual. We can provide this service for $25.

• Car, truck, SUV, semi, and tractor tires, accepted together in the same container.

• Airplane tires
• Skid-steer tires

• Most tires $2.50 each fee.
• Semi tires $7.00 each.
• Ask attendant about larger tires.
• Have your load checked by the Attendant before unloading.

• Scrap Lumber
• Pallets
  Accepted together in the same bin.

• Treated Wood
• Plywood
• Particle Board
• Painted Wood
• Finished Wood (stain, varnish, shellac, deck stain, etc.)

• $10/cubic yard fee
• Nails are okay.