How it Works:

 

 

Many neighborhoods and MUDs have considered a recycling program.  In some landfills in areas like Colorado and California, where the cost of land is prohibitive, recyclables are not permitted to be deposited as trash.  Recyclables simply occupy too much space in the landfill. As a result, in those states, it was cost effective to send recyclables to recycle centers. However in Harris County, land is cheaper and recycling is not considered a priority.  While this is a contributing factor to electing a recycling program, there is more to the issue.

Neighborhoods and MUDs found the programs previously offered by trash companies were trying to make a recycling program fit their ready made trash business. The trash companies were using their heavy duty trash equipment and crews to pick up recyclables. The result was it was not cost effective, and in some cases, it was found the “recyclers” were merely collecting the goods and transporting them to the same dump site as the trash.  It was actually cheaper for the collector to dump the recyclables with the trash than be burdened with transporting to separate recycle receivers, even taking in to consideration the value of the recyclables collected. Obviously, this defeats the purpose of recycling, which can be seen as two-fold: first, to promote the reuse of a resource and second, to reduce the volume impact trash has on landfills.

What is collected?

• Paper – magazines, newspapers, copy paper, computer paper, catalogs, pizza boxes, paper egg cartons, shredded paper tied tightly in plastic bags, etc.
• Plastics – juice, water, milk, soda, cleaning and detergent containers (if in doubt, please check container for stamp. Most plastics have mold stamp; we collect #1 - #7.
• Thin Plastics - grocery store bags, dry cleaning bags, produce bags, plastic sleeves from newspapers
• Aluminum – any type of soda, beer, drink, foil, pie pans, trays etc.
  
• Tin Cans – any food can, pet food, etc.
• Cardboard – boxes, cereal, food, detergent, pet food, etc. (please break down larger boxes)
• Glass - we are happy to now be able to provide glass pickup for our clients (please do not include pottery, china, mirrors, stoneware,  coffee cups, etc. )

**Please lightly rinse out all containers.  All materials must be free of food residue. Recyclables are delivered to a certified recycling center and they prefer clean as much as possible.  Thanks for your help with this.

Residential Recycling of Texas is a company devoted exclusively to recycling:

When do you get a collection container?

RRT can deliver recycling containers to residents. The container will include instructions about the materials which will be collected and the schedule for pickup. RRT provides a very competitive rate for purchase of containers.  If your materials won’t all fit in the container, recyclables may be placed in closed plastic garbage bags with your container.

What is not collected at this time?

• Computer Parts
• Batteries
• Medical Waste
• Biohazards
• Styrofoam
• Light Bulbs
• Paint Cans
• Wire Clothes Hangers

Do items have to be sorted?

No.

What is the collection schedule?

Residential Recycling will work with your neighborhood to help determine what day materials will be picked up.  We ask that recycling bins be set out 7:00 a.m. on your scheduled day.

Holidays observed are:  New Years Day, Memorial Day, 4th July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day.  If a holiday falls on a collection day, service will resume the following week  on the collection day.

What do I have to do to participate?

Place your full container outside before 7:00 am the day of your scheduled pickup.