Peoria, IL Trash & Recycling: Recycling Requirements (2026)

Peoria's single-stream program is one of the more accessible in Illinois outside Chicagoland. The 95-gallon cart accommodates most households' biweekly volume; residents needing more capacity may request additional carts free of charge. Acceptable items include corrugated cardboard (broken down), mixed paper (newspapers, magazines, junk mail, office paper), boxboard, food and beverage cans, glass bottles and jars (rinsed), plastic bottles, jugs, and tubs marked #1-#7 with necks. Plastic bags, plastic film, polystyrene foam, takeout containers without necks, electronics, batteries, syringes, and food-soiled paper are NOT accepted in the single-stream cart. Plastic bags should be returned to grocery store collection bins. Contamination (non-recyclable material in the cart) can result in GFL leaving the cart with a non-recyclable-material tag and skipping pickup; chronic contamination may lead to cart removal. The Illinois Solid Waste Planning and Recycling Act (415 ILCS 15) requires county-level recycling plans, and Peoria County's plan supports the City's program. There is no Illinois statewide mandatory residential recycling law analogous to California SB 1383 or New Jersey's mandatory recycling rules; participation in Peoria is voluntary but practically universal because the cart is delivered and the service is bundled. Commercial recycling at multi-family complexes of 5+ units is handled by private contracts and is not part of the City program. The Peoria County Recycling Center accepts drop-off recycling for materials not in the curbside stream.