Santa Clara County, CA Trash & Recycling: Recycling Requirements (2026)

Recycling is mandatory through the County's three-container system, codified in Division B11, Chapter IX (Ord. 94, Dec. 7, 2021) and aligned with California SB 1383. Under Section B11-184, every residential and nonresidential premises must subscribe to the three-container collection service. Section B11-189 specifies how materials must be sorted: producers shall place source-separated recyclable refuse in the blue container, source-separated green-container organic waste (including food waste) in the green container, and gray-container waste in the gray container. Producers may not place materials designated for the gray container into the green or blue container, and may not place prohibited container contaminants in any collection container; they must source-separate in accordance with the County's published list of accepted materials for each container, which the County maintains online.

For businesses and multifamily complexes of five or more units in the unincorporated area, the County requires refuse, recycling, and organics service, with a self-haul waiver available for recyclables if the business source-separates and keeps records. Cart set-outs are periodically monitored for contamination. The blue-container recycling requirement is part of the same mandatory three-cart framework as trash and organics, so opting out of recycling is generally not permitted for covered premises.