Elyria, OH Trash & Recycling: Recycling Requirements (2026)

Elyria City Council set the recycling vocabulary in Chapter 959 of the Codified Ordinances, which covers the collection and disposal of garbage, rubbish and recyclables (Ord. 2017-11, passed 2-6-17). Section 959.01(f) lists exactly what counts as commingled recyclable materials: all glass beverage bottles, food jars, plastic milk containers, plastic bottles and containers coded numbers one through seven and with caps removed, and aluminum, bimetal and steel cans. The plastics are identified by resin code, numbers one through seven, and the caps must be removed. Containers that are contaminated with motor oil, antifreeze, pesticides and herbicides are excluded, so a container contaminated with any of those products is outside the program.

Newspaper is a separate defined item. Section 959.01(i) limits it to newsprint used for printing newspapers and excludes all other paper products, so other paper falls outside that definition. Section 959.01(d) names the collector as the City and its duly authorized agents and employees, and it lists newspapers, commingled recyclable materials and yard waste next to garbage and rubbish as the material those collectors handle. Section 959.01(b) adds that the City's collecting agents charge the fees for collecting and disposing of garbage or rubbish, yard waste, recyclables and white goods.

The operating rules sit in other sections of the same chapter. Section 959.09 directs the Director of Safety-Service to make the rules, regulations and standards for collecting commingled recyclable materials, including the division of the City into collection districts. Section 959.13(a) controls when recyclables can be put out, and Section 959.06(c) bars anyone from removing recycling from the curbside. The Office of Safety Service runs collection under Section 959.05.