Bowie, MD Trash & Recycling: Recycling Rules (2026)

Under City Code § 10-6C, the City of Bowie provides mixed (single-stream) recycling collection on a set day in each section of the City, and residents do not need to request the service. Recycling must go into the City-provided recycling containers rather than loose or in bags of the resident's choosing. The ordinance lists accepted materials as plastic, metal and glass food and drink containers, paper and cardboard, but because that list changes from time to time, the Code puts the burden on residents to check the City website or call the Public Works Department for the current version before setting out a cart.

Timing is strict: recycling may be placed at the curb no earlier than 5:00 p.m. the day before the scheduled collection date and must be out by 7:00 a.m. on collection day itself. Anything set out after 7:00 a.m. on the scheduled day may be skipped rather than collected, so a household that misses the morning cutoff waits for the next cycle. Section 10-6 sits in Chapter 10, Garbage, Trash and Refuse, alongside the City's household trash rules (§ 10-3) and yard waste collection (§ 10-6A), and violations fall under the same chapter-wide enforcement scheme in § 10-13.

Because recycling is Chapter 10 territory rather than a Prince George's County program, disputes over missed pickups or container issues go to the City's own Public Works Department, not the county.