Alhambra, CA Trash & Recycling: Mandatory Organics Recycling (2026)

On May 24, 2021, the Alhambra City Council passed the City's Mandatory Organic Waste Disposal Reduction Ordinance (Ordinance No. O2M21-4787), requiring all residential and commercial premises in the city to subscribe to the City's organic waste recycling program. This implements California's SB 1383, the statewide short-lived climate pollutant law that requires jurisdictions to provide organic waste collection and targets a 75% reduction in organic waste disposal by 2025. With a population over 70,000, Alhambra does not qualify for SB 1383's low-population/high-elevation rural exemptions. Republic Services provides green organics carts, and residents must place food scraps (raw and cooked, including meat, seafood, dairy, and prepared foods), food-soiled paper (napkins, uncoated plates, pizza boxes), yard trimmings, grass, leaves, and branches up to 4 feet long and up to 4-6 inches in diameter, plus undecorated Christmas wreaths, into the green cart. Notably, the City prohibits palm fronds from the green cart (they tangle equipment) and excludes pet waste, treated/painted wood, plastic and compostable plastics, rocks, dirt, diapers, and bathroom tissue. The City offers two SB 1383 waivers: a de minimis waiver (commercial generators of minimal organic waste) and a physical space waiver (no room for the three-container system); applications go to alhambra@republicservices.com. Contaminated carts may be tagged, and noncompliance may trigger city enforcement.