Recycle Right Knoxville

Hey Knoxville, do you recycle right?

Why should you recycle right?

"Knox County taxpayers spend almost $2,000,000 per year to transport to and bury waste in a landfill forever while the revenue from the sale of recyclables can sometimes exceed $500,000 per year. Recycling helps offset significant expenses and helps keep taxes low." - From Knoxcounty.org

Items accepted in curbside recycling:

Paper and cardboard

Newspaper, magazines, junk mail
Sticky notes, envelopes (not necessary to remove plastic windows)
Notebooks, office paper with or without staples and tape
Cereal boxes
Cardboard & cardboard tubes
Shredded paper (placed in a paper bag to prevent scattered pieces)
Books

Plastics

Rinsed plastic bottles and lids
Rinsed plastic cups
Rinsed plastic jugs, milk jugs, detergent containers

Metals

Rinsed aluminum cans (*Aluminum foil and baking pans are not accepted materials)
Rinsed steel cans
Rinsed tin cans
Rinsed metal lids

Items NOT accepted in curbside recycling:

Glass

Glass (must be taken to a city drop-off center in order to be recycled)

Plastic film & Other problematic plastics

All plastic bags
- Grocery bags
- Bread bags
- Zip-top bags
- Dry cleaning bags
- Chip bags/candy wrappers (nothing with a silver inner lining)
The plastic wrap around many products including: paper plates, napkins, bathroom tissue, diapers, and more
Plastic straws/ utensils
Plastic toys
Styrofoam