Bloomington, IL Trash & Recycling: Recycling Rules (2026)

City Code § 21-204 defines RECYCLABLE MATERIALS narrowly for the City of Bloomington's program: aluminum and steel cans, glass bottles and jars, plastic bottles marked #1 or #2, food boxes, cardboard and paper. Anything outside that list is not part of the curbside recycling stream. Section 21-602 limits the approved container to a wheeled cart of 65 or 95 gallons, or another volume the City issues, supplied exclusively by the Public Works Department or its vendor; the old blue hand-carried bins the City once issued no longer qualify, and every cart remains City property rather than the resident's.

the day after, and whatever is stored outside that window has to be the City cart itself or another watertight, tight-lidded container, never a plastic or paper bag. A cart the City finds defective, meaning no cover, a broken handle, holes, sharp edges, or an unsanitary condition, gets a red condemned tag under § 21-607; the City itself replaces a defective City-owned cart, though a resident can be billed for replacing one that is unsanitary or was damaged through clear abuse or negligent misuse.