Warren, MI Trash & Recycling: Recycling Requirements (2026)
Key Facts
- Program type
- Mandatory curbside source separation
- First container
- Provided free at program start
- Extra containers
- Sold at council-set price
- Container marking
- Distinctive color, city seal printed
- Enforcing agency
- Department of Public Service
- Penalty
- Blight violation, Administrative Hearings Bureau
Summary
Warren requires every household in the serviced area to source-separate glass, cans, and paper from trash and set it out in the city-issued recyclable container. The city provides the first container free; recyclables placed loose or in any other container are left at the curb.
There is hereby established within the city a program ("curbside program") for the separate collection of municipal solid waste compostables and recyclable materials from all residents of the City.... All residents and other persons in charge of any premises located within the city areas serviced by the curbside program, established by this article, shall source separate all designated recyclables and compostables from solid waste and place them between curb and sidewalk where possible at the side of the public right-of-way fronting their premises in the manner designated by this article on the dates specified for collection....d.All recyclables must be placed in a recyclable material container provided by the City of Warren. Recyclables not so contained will not be picked up.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 102).
Full Breakdown
Section 16-3(a) of the Warren City Code establishes a mandatory curbside program for source-separated collection of recyclable material from every residence in the areas the Department of Public Service services. Residents must place designated recyclables between the curb and sidewalk on the schedule the director of public service publishes. Section 16-2 lists the covered materials: glass bottles and jars without caps, tin and aluminum cans, plastic containers marked '1' (PETE) or '2' (HDPE), newspapers and inserts, telephone books, magazines, catalogs, brown paper bags, and most other paper.
Recyclables must go in the city-issued recyclable container described in Section 16-8; the city supplied the first container to every residence free of charge when the mandatory program began, and any additional container is sold at a price the city council sets by resolution. Section 16-8(a) requires the container to be a distinctive color or material printed with the city seal or similar wording so collection crews can identify it. Recyclables set out loose, in a bag, or in any container other than the city-issued one go uncollected.
Once placed at curbside in compliance with the ordinance, the material becomes the exclusive property of the city or its agent, and it is unlawful for anyone other than the authorized hauler to remove it under Section 16-5(a).
Violations & Fines
Placing recyclables in anything other than the city container, or failing to source-separate them from trash, results in no pickup and can bring a blight-violation notice under Section 16-10, decided by the Administrative Hearings Bureau under Chapter 2.5, Section 2.5-7. Scavenging recyclables already set at curbside is a separate unlawful act under Section 16-5(a), regardless of who owns the property.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is recycling mandatory for Warren residents?
What container do I need for recycling in Warren?
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Warren
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Recycling Requirements in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Macomb County handle recycling requirements.