Novi, MI Trash & Recycling: Recycling Requirements (2026)

The City Council adopted this program in Ordinance No. 15-184 (2015) because multiple private haulers were wearing out city roads, so Novi now contracts with a single waste hauler chosen through competitive bidding (Sections 16-71, 16-76). That hauler must also run a recycling and composting program consistent with the Oakland County Solid Waste Management Plan (Section 16-60(b)). Section 16-61 defines recyclable materials as commingled or presorted paper, glass, metal, plastic, aluminum, newspaper, corrugated paper and yard clippings, separated from solid waste before collection; hazardous waste is excluded.

Participation is voluntary: Section 16-63(a) encourages owners, lessees and occupants to separate recyclables and prepare them for pickup in the manner set by a council resolution, meaning the operative schedule and container rules live outside the printed code. Residents are billed semi-annually in advance (Section 16-73), and households at or below the federal poverty guideline may apply to the city treasurer by July 1 each year for a fee waiver reviewed by the three-member Solid Waste Review Commission, made up of the city assessor, city treasurer and a city manager designee (Section 16-75).

Once recyclables reach the curb, ownership passes to the contracted hauler, and no one else may collect them (Section 16-63(c)). Community Development and the Department of Public Works administer the contract; Novi Police enforce nuisance and civil-infraction violations under Chapter 16, Article IV.