Battle Creek, MI Trash & Recycling: Collection Schedule (2026)

Section 1064.24 of the Battle Creek Codified Ordinances sets what residential customers receive. The contractor provides either curbside unlimited or backyard collection one time per week, and curbside recycling services either one time per week or bi-weekly, as the City Manager determines appropriate. Curbside means the part of a right-of-way adjacent to paved or travelled City roadways, excluding approved alleys. Backyard means a side or backyard or place convenient for both the City contractor and the customer, and the contractor is never required to enter a garage or dwelling.

Service is mandatory in the sense that Section 1064.03 requires every owner, occupant or person in possession of a residential premises to have accumulations of refuse removed and disposed of under the chapter. The City provides the removal service, which can include recycling, and the charges are those specified by the City Commission. Section 1064.06 defines a residential premises as a parcel with four or fewer residential units. Owners of multiple residential premises, meaning five or more units, and of nonresidential premises handle their own storage, collection and disposal or recycling by any means authorized by law.

The service options differ in volume. Curbside unlimited lets the customer put out an unlimited amount of residential refuse once a week, while backyard pickup covers two containers or plastic bags. Under Section 1064.25 the contractor collects refuse and recycling on the same designated weekday, and each residential unit can set out only refuse generated by that unit. Section 1064.21 excludes commercial refuse, construction waste, hazardous waste and industrial waste from the contractor's duty.