Kirkwood, MO Trash & Recycling: Recycling Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Depository location
- 350 South Taylor Avenue
- Accepted plastics
- #1 and #2 bottles, lids removed
- Ownership after deposit
- Becomes City of Kirkwood property
- Unauthorized removal
- Prohibited without City authorization
- Penalty
- $5 to $1,000 fine, up to 3 months jail
Summary
Kirkwood runs a City recycling depository at 350 South Taylor Avenue that accepts only specific materials such as aluminum and steel cans, clear, green or brown glass, newspaper, cardboard, mixed paper, #1 and #2 plastic bottles, magazines, phone books and textiles. Kirkwood Code of Ordinances § 17-115 bans dumping anything else there, and every item deposited becomes City property that no one may remove without authorization.
(a) Materials permitted to be deposited. The following materials may be deposited at the City recycling depository, located at 350 South Taylor Avenue, in areas marked for the deposit of such items: ... (b) Depositing of unauthorized materials at depository. The dumping, depositing or placing of any material other than those set forth above in § 17-115(a) at the City of Kirkwood Recycling Depository shall be prohibited. (c) Ownership of authorized material deposited at the depository. All material authorized by § 17-115(a) deposited at the Kirkwood Recycling Depository shall become the property of the City of Kirkwood and removal of such material without the expressed authorization of the City of Kirkwood shall be prohibited. (d) Violations. Violations of any of the provisions set forth herein shall subject the violator to the penalties set forth in the § 1-8 of the Kirkwood Code of Ordinances.
Full Breakdown
Kirkwood Code of Ordinances § 17-115 governs the City's recycling depository at 350 South Taylor Avenue. Subsection (a) lists exactly what residents may drop off in the marked areas: aluminum cans; steel fruit, beverage and vegetable cans; clear, green or brown glass jars and bottles; newspaper; corrugated cardboard and Kraft paper bags; mixed paper such as junk mail, flat cardboard and office paper; plastic bottles numbered #1 and #2 (milk jugs, soda bottles) with the lids removed; magazines no more than 1 1/2 inches wide; telephone books; and textiles.
Anything outside that list cannot go into the depository at all: subsection (b) makes dumping, depositing or placing unauthorized material at the depository a Code violation. Once material is deposited under subsection (a), subsection (c) converts it into City of Kirkwood property, and removing it afterward without the City's express authorization is itself prohibited, a rule aimed at stopping scavengers from picking through the bins. Subsection (d) ties enforcement to the citywide general penalty in § 1-8 of the Code: a fine of $5 to $1,000, up to three months in jail, or both, with each day of an ongoing violation treated as a separate offense.
Kirkwood's depository program was set up by Ord. No. 8491 in 1996 and amended by Ord. No. 9077 in 2001, well before curbside recycling contracts existed in many area suburbs.
Violations & Fines
Section 17-115(d) subjects anyone who dumps unauthorized material at the depository, or who removes deposited material without City authorization, to the general penalty in Kirkwood Code of Ordinances § 1-8: a fine of $5 to $1,000, up to three months in jail, or both. Each day a violation continues is a separate offense, so leaving an ongoing unauthorized dumpsite can compound the fine.
Frequently Asked Questions
What can I recycle at Kirkwood's public recycling depository?
Can I take recyclables back out of the Kirkwood depository bins?
What happens if I dump something not on Kirkwood's recycling list?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Kirkwood
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