Redlands, CA Landscaping Rules: Composting (2026)

To comply with California Senate Bill 1383 (SB 1383), the City of Redlands requires all residents, multi-family tenants, and commercial businesses to participate in food-waste recycling. Residents must place food waste in the green curbside (yard waste) bin rather than the regular trash. Accepted organics include green waste (tree trimmings, grass clippings, leaves, twigs, pruning waste, flowers, and weeds) and food waste such as fruits, vegetables, dairy and cheese, bread, pasta, cooked and raw meats and fish, egg shells, bones, peels, fruit pits, plate scrapings, and expired foods. The collected organic waste is consolidated and composted by a local company, diverting it from landfills and reducing greenhouse-gas emissions. The city explicitly encourages residents to continue backyard composting if it fits their lifestyle, using the green-bin program for items not suited to home composting. To support the program, the city has provided free kitchen compost pails to help residents collect food scraps. Plastic bags - including compostable or biodegradable bags - are not accepted in the green bin. This is a state-mandated program implemented locally by Redlands, so the obligation to separate organics is statewide, but the bin setup, accepted materials, and collection are handled by the city's solid-waste services. Residents who compost at home still benefit from the program for materials like cooked meat, dairy, and bones that are not ideal for backyard bins.