Curbside Recycling

• Berry Containers
• Aluminum foil
• Batteries
• Clothing and shoes
• Large metal and scrap metal
• Appliances and electronics
• Plastic bags and film
• Styrofoam 
• Disposable dishes and cups
• Yard Waste

No, the 96-gallon cart is the only size offered and we are unable at this time to customize each cart to each household.

As an every-other-week service, we want to make sure residents have plenty of space to collect all their recycling. Glass, metals, mixed paper, cardboard, and screw-top plastic will all go in one cart. The goal is to fill recycling carts while reducing the amount of garbage.

This size was also recommended because it works best with the recycling trucks and automated dumping. Also, the larger carts are less likely to blow around neighborhoods after being emptied

We love that you are already recycling! Good work!

If you are a current customer of Aspen Waste, you will receive a new City of Ames recycling cart in June, and your old recycling bin will be collected. Your Aspen Waste recycling fee will go away, and the $7.75 monthly charge will show up on your City of Ames utility bill.

If you get curbside recycling from another hauler, please check with them before July 1 to make sure they are removing the recycling charge and collecting their recycling cart.

No, there is no option to to opt out. All single-family and multi-family properties of four units or less will be charged $7.75 monthly for recycling service on their City of Ames utility bill. Customers will be charged whether they use recycling services or not, and customers will still be charged monthly for recycling if they return the recycling cart. 

The City of Ames pays to dispose of trash by the pound. It is important to note that recycling is more cost-effective, and customers who opt out of recycling and throw recyclable items into the garbage make the overall trash disposal system more expensive. The curbside recycling system offers residents a convenient, cost-effective way to reduce the amount of trash sent to landfills.

Existing centralized drop-off locations for sorted recyclables and community drop-off locations for cardboard will remain available. We may scale back the glass drop-off locations in the future as glass can be placed in the curbside cart. 

City of Ames Utility Services will coordinate billing and customer service.

Aspen Waste will provide collection service.

Multifamily buildings with five or more units will not be impacted by the new recycling program. A pilot project is underway to help build understanding of feasibility and best practices for multifamily recycling. 

Find out more about the multifamily pilot here: Sustainability Grants

The conversation on curbside recycling started with the City's transition away from waste-to-energy to a transfer station waste management model. Learn more about the new system here: Resource Recovery and Recycling Campus (R3C)

City Staff presented an initial report to City Council in August 2025 outlining the need for and key issues around curbside recycling: Staff Report on Residential Curbside Recycling (August 12, 2025)

We then conducted a survey seeking public input regarding curbside recycling. See results of the survey here: Curbside Recycling Survey Results (September 2025)

The survey results and key policy issues around curbside recycling were then presented to City Council on Nov. 18, 2025, and the Council elected to move forward with the program. Nov. 18, 2025 Residential Curbside Recycling Council Action Form

• Mixed paper and cardboard is transported to a facility to be processed into containerboard
• Glass is transported to a facility to be sorted by color, cleaned, and crushed into cullet, which is sent to manufacturers to be remelted into new bottles and jars, used by fiberglass insulation producers, or applied as aggregate in construction and infrastructure projects.
• Plastic is transported to a facility to be processed and molded into PET pellets
• Metal is transported to a facility to be melted and rolled into can sheet, or processed and re-alloyed into new steel products

   

We partner with vendors who have verified where materials are transported to for the purpose of recycling.

There are instances where recyclables are contaminated due to non-recyclable materials being put in recycling carts, therefore rejected. It is important to put the correct items in your recycling cart. 

If your garbage is collected in the alley, your recycling cart may need to be initially delivered to the front of your residence. However, your recycling will routinely be collected from its usual place in the alley.