Yonkers, NY Trash & Recycling: Recycling Rules (2026)

City Code § 92-4(A) makes every residential waste generator responsible for source-separating recyclable material from household waste at the point and time of generation, a duty that has run continuously since September 1, 1992. Recyclable material is defined narrowly at § 92-3: newsprint, corrugated cardboard, glass and metal food/beverage containers, bulk metals, plastics limited to food/beverage/detergent/shampoo containers, yard waste, vehicular batteries and motor oil, all rinsed, dry and free of contaminants. Section 92-5(D) sets the mechanics for the commingled stream: metals, plastic and glass must be placed together in a designated refuse container and may not go out in paper or plastic bags.

Newsprint and cardboard follow separate rules under § 92-5(B): newsprint goes in a brown paper bag or open cardboard box, untied, while cardboard must be flattened and tied. Motor oil and used vehicular batteries are excluded from curbside pickup entirely; § 92-4(C) and (D) require residents to return them to service stations or retailers obligated to accept them for recycling. Households that compost their own yard waste on-site are expressly exempted from that portion of the separation duty by § 92-4(E). The Department of Public Works, under the Commissioner, administers the program and may adjust collection rules with two weeks' newspaper notice under § 92-5(F). Removing recyclables from another resident's curbside bin is separately banned as scavenging under § 92-11.