Kauai County, HI Trash & Recycling: Recycling Rules (2026)

Article 6 of Chapter 21 governs the residential drop-off recycling centers around the island. Section 21-6.1 restricts use to residential self-haulers, and § 21-6.2 limits what goes in to consumer recyclables the County Engineer designates, such as newsprint, corrugated cardboard, aluminum beverage containers, glass containers, bimetallic cans, mixed paper and plastic containers, as defined in § 21-1.3. Residents and visitors must follow the posted instructions at each site on preparation and accepted materials. Section 21-6.3 bars depositing ordinary refuse in or around a center, and once recyclables are dropped off they become the property of the County or its contractor; nobody may remove them from the site except the County or its authorized hauler.

The Article also bars anyone from bringing business, commercial, industrial or other nonresidential recyclables to a residential center, and violators face the penalties set for the Chapter. Beyond the drop-off centers, the County runs a curbside recycling option: § 21-2.2(a)(3) issues a blue-lid cart for recyclables at no added charge to premises the County Engineer designates, and a pilot curbside recycling project under § 21-2.2(c)(3) lets the Department require participating owners to separate targeted materials into recycling carts, collected on a schedule that can run more often than regular refuse pickup and at no charge, with a fine under § 21-1.6, after at least two warnings, for anyone who refuses to separate as directed.