Colusa County, CA Trash & Recycling: Recycling Requirements (2026)

Under Chapter 32, "recycle" means any process that converts garbage, rubbish or salvageable waste into a usable product (Sec. 32-1(d)(29)). Salvaging of materials such as metal, paper, glass and wood is permitted at the County's landfills under controlled conditions approved by the public works department, with materials deposited at a recycle center or designated area (Sec. 32-7(e)); uncontrolled scavenging is prohibited at all disposal sites and transfer stations (Sec. 32-7(f)). The County Code itself does not mandate that residents separate recyclables into a specific cart, but the franchise hauler, Recology Butte Colusa, supplies a 64-gallon residential recycling cart serviced every other week, accepting paper, cardboard, glass, hard plastics, aluminum and metal (recyclables must be loose, clean, empty and dry). The Maxwell Transfer Station also accepts recyclables and green waste for a fee and takes used oil, white goods and e-waste. Statewide, California's mandatory commercial recycling (AB 341) and mandatory commercial organics (AB 1826) laws require qualifying businesses and multifamily complexes to arrange recycling regardless of county rules. These provisions cover the unincorporated county; the cities of Colusa and Williams have their own programs.