As part of the ChoiceCollect garbage and recycling program available to single family residents, Specialty Solid Waste & Recycling, the City's garbage contractor, collects yard trimmings at no additional cost on scheduled service days. Residents may order either a 64 or a 96-gallon cart to use the service. If a resident has more yard trimmings than will fit the cart, additional customer-supplied 32-gallon cans may be used and placed curbside for collection along with the yard trimmings cart. Holiday trees can be recycled at the curb if cut into 4-foot lengths or shorter, with stand, lights and decorations removed. Or, place tree inside yard cart if the lid will still close.
Yard trimmings placed in plastic bags cannot be recycled for compost and require the purchase and use of extra garbage tags.
Acceptable in yard trimmings:
- Grasses, weeds
- Flowers
- Floral trimmings
- Leaves
- Brush, twigs, pruned clippings
- Plants
- Branches
- 6 inches or smaller in diameter
- 4 foot lengths or shorter
- Bundled (1 foot or less in diameter)
- Place next to yard cart for collection
Unacceptable in yard trimmings (dispose as garbage):
- Bamboo
- Cactus
- Food scraps, fruits and vegetables*
- Ice plant
- Yucca
- Palm fronds
- Poison oak/ivy
*The City of Sunnyvale offers compost workshops for residents wanting to learn how to compost their own yard trimmings and food scraps.
Residents of Mountain View, Palo Alto, Sunnyvale and Los Altos may collect up to one pick-up load per week of composted yard trimmings at the SMaRT Station® free of charge.
Do not place hazardous waste or electronics in your recycling, garbage or yard trimmings carts.
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