The City of Asheville is proud to celebrate America Recycles Day November 15 which promotes the importance of recycling and recognizes the efforts of Ashevillians to recycle right. Taking the time to properly recycle improves our quality of life by supporting a clean, economically vibrant, and sustainable environment. 

More than 24,000 tons of trash are generated and landfilled by City of Asheville residents each year, and over 13 million tons are landfilled by North Carolinians statewide. In 2020, Asheville residents diverted more than 9,000 tons of recyclables from the landfill through the curbside recycling program. Through daily actions, residents can reduce waste by composting, reusing products, donating unwanted items, and purchasing goods made with recycled products.

 “Wishful recycling” (i.e. putting in items that we’d like to recycle or that seem “recyclable” but that are not accepted by our  recycling company) and non-recyclable contamination damages equipment, poses worker safety issues, and increases the cost of recycling. Let’s all do our part to “Recycle Right” and use our blue bins wisely. 

 Tips

Residents can follow the steps below to recycle more efficiently and prevent contamination of the recycling bin:

• No plastic bags! 
• Do not put cords, hoses, and other string-like items in the recycle bin as they can tangle around rotating recycling equipment.
• Do not bag your recyclable items.
• Use the Waste Wizard Tool on AVL Collects and check out the City of Asheville’s recycling webpage to see what you can recycle.

Organics, including food waste, compostables, leaves, and yard waste, can be kept out of the landfill and responsibly managed to create compost. Keeping organics, such as leaves and yard waste, out of our stormwater drainage systems helps us maintain these systems and keep our community clean. 

Learn about opportunities to drop off your food scraps for a compost program at the Stephens-Lee Recreation Center or the Buncombe County Landfill convenience center at this link.

The City of Asheville provides leaf and brush collection service for residents. Leaves should be bagged and brought to the curb, preferably in paper lawn bags or reusable containers  to save staff time and reduce single use plastics!