Garbage and Recycling

Properly disposing of household batteries can keep our communities safe and prevent garbage/recycling truck and facility fires. 

Battery Drop-Off

Household batteries can be recycled/properly disposed free of charge at Metro South’s Household Hazardous Waste Facility (2001 Washington St., Oregon City) and at other drop-off locations. Contact Metro’s Recycling Information Center at 503-234-3000 or use their Find a Recycler tool for disposal options.

While curbside battery collection is not currently available to those who live in apartment, condo, or other multifamily communities with shared garbage and recycling service, Clackamas County Sustainability & Solid Waste is working with garbage and recycling companies to find a way to offer this service in a safe manner in the future. 

Have friends or family with a glass bin? Ask to use theirs and be sure to follow the instructions below.

Curbside Collection of Batteries

Curbside collection of batteries is now available to single-family residential customers throughout Clackamas County (including within all cities) as part of regular garbage and recycling collection service. 

Haga click aquí para ver el video en español.

Discarded batteries can spark and cause fires when not handled properly, creating dangerous situations for garbage and recycling truck drivers, processing facilities, and our communities. Follow these three important steps below to safely recycle/dispose of batteries in your glass bin.

Preparation

Follow these three steps to properly prepare your discarded batteries for recycling/disposal:

Safety Tips

Damaged (or corroded, bulging, leaking) batteries must be taken to a household hazardous waste facility. Never put damaged batteries in the trash or curbside battery recycling program.

1. Place damaged batteries in a small plastic bag with absorbent, nonflammable materials, such as kitty litter, sand, or dry rice. For extra safety, place this bag into a metal can, like an old soup can. 
2. Take to a Household Hazardous Waste Facility for safe disposal (Call 503-234-3000 Monday-Friday, 8:30am – 5pm, for phone assistance).

Never remove embedded or built-in rechargeable batteries. If a battery doesn’t come out easily, take the whole device to a drop-off facility. Call Metro’s Recycling Information Center at 503-234-3000 on Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. or search Find a Recycler for recycling options.

Why it matters

Prevent fires: Batteries can spark and cause fires. Battery-caused fires in garbage trucks and waste processing facilities have increased dramatically in recent years. These fires put workers’ lives in danger and can cost millions of dollars in damage. To prevent fires, batteries must be collected separately from other waste and the batteries that are most likely to cause fires must be taped. Learn more.

Avoid harm from toxic chemicals: Many batteries contain materials that, if not disposed of properly, can be harmful to people, animals, and the environment.  By collecting batteries separately, we can ensure safe handling, disposal, and recycling.  [Source: EPA]

Recycle batteries into new things: Batteries contain metal, plastic, and other materials that can be used to make new products. Old batteries can be recycled into new batteries, as well as stainless steel and even road asphalt. Recycling these materials reduces the negative impacts of producing new products on our air, water, and climate. Learn more.

Frequently Asked Questions

Have a question about other materials? 

• Recycle Guides
  View and download a Clackamas County Recycle Guide (Available in seven languages)
• Find a Recycler
  Look up easy options to recycle, donate or reuse anything from batteries and packing peanuts to that old dishwasher.
• Metro Recycling Information Center
  Call for your garbage and recycling questions at 503-234-3000.
• Recycle or Not on Instagram
  Check the posts and direct message pictures of questionable items to @recycleornot on Instagram. (Available in Spanish: @ReciclarONo)
• Play the Recycle or Not game
  Test your recycling knowledge with this interactive game. (Available in Spanish: ReciclarONo)

Reduce, reuse, and then recycle right to reduce the energy needed to make new products, reduce pollution, and create jobs. 

The things we use (and the food we consume) affect our communities and the environment. From making a product (or growing food) to transporting it to a store (or our doorsteps) to using it (or eating it), the impacts mount at every step. How we ultimately dispose of an item, including its packaging (a peel/shell is nature’s packaging of food), also has impacts. By rethinking our relationship with stuff (and waste), we can lessen the burden on the environment by prioritizing waste reduction and reuse. 

Reduce and reuse first

Buying secondhand, repairing broken items, and repurposing materials conserves natural resources, protects the environment, and saves money. By utilizing the stuff we already have (things or food), we prevent the need to make new stuff, and therefore prevent further impacts on our environment, communities, and people. 

Use our interactive map to find local reuse, refill, and rental locations.

Reduce

Reducing our waste can come in many forms. We might already have something that will meet the need; other times, we may determine we don’t really need the item, such as:

• Opting not to use a straw.
• Declining a bag at check-out after purchasing only a single (few) item(s).
• Avoiding produce bags for fruits and veggies, such as oranges, onions, and avocados.

There are countless opportunities in our daily lives to avoid waste. Small actions can make a big difference. Let’s challenge ourselves to find ways, however small, to reduce our impact. 

Refill

Refill to avoid new and single-use packaging—whether it be food, body care, cleaning supplies, or beverages—with containers you already own! Many local stores around the county carry items in bulk and allow you to bring your own container/bag to refill! Reuse old plastic/zip-seal, cloth, and paper bags, or bring in bottles/jars (when allowed).

Find locations on our interactive map for refilling of:

• Food
• Beverages
• Soaps, Cleaning Products/Supplies, and Body Care

Repair 

Repair to keep items from going to waste unnecessarily, save money, and reduce demand for new products. 

Attend a Repair Fair in Clackamas County. They are free community events were volunteer fixers help repair broken items. Learn more about upcoming Repair Fairs. 

There are many repair shops, tailors, cobblers, mechanics, etc. around the region! While we work to compile a list in Clackamas County, visit Portland Repair Finder for regional options.

Visit iFixIt to learn how to fix your stuff with step-by-step videos, purchase quality parts and tools to get the job done, and read or post solutions from the fix-it community.

Rent

Share books, seeds, things with your local community. Clackamas County libraries and some businesses can help reduce the amount of things you need to own by renting books and more. From shovels to games, kitchenware, karaoke machines, gear and equipment, and more, you have access to more than you may ever need. 

Libraries in Clackamas County offer books, media, and more! 

Libraries of Things provide an opportunity to try out an item before you purchase your own – make sure you enjoy the ukulele before investing in your own. Instead of buying and storing an item year-round for the one or two times you use it a year, check out a bubble machine for your kid’s birthday party, and then return it for someone else to enjoy.

Seed Libraries encourage a culture of sharing and sustainability. By providing good quality, local seeds, seed libraries make growing your own food easy and accessible.

Rental shops to access music, indoor and outdoor tools, a wide variety of gear and equipment, trucks and vans, and more.  Fees apply. 

Find locations on our interactive map for rentals of:

• Local libraries
• Rental shops (e.g. music, tools, and equipment)

View/download PDF flyers in English & Spanish:

Reuse

We can’t always avoid waste, but that doesn’t mean the item should go directly in the trash. Consider giving good condition items a second life. 

Shop secondhand and/or for salvaged materials to save money, avoid packaging, support local businesses, and promote the circular economy.

Donate, Consign, Trade-In, and Sell clothes, furniture, and other good condition items to extend their lifespan, reduce the need for new materials, and limit usable goods going to landfill. 

Find locations on our interactive map  for local shopping, donation, consignment, trade-in, and selling of:

• Art & Craft Supplies
• Books
• Building Materials
• Electronics
• Outdoor/Athletic Apparel & Gear
• Thrift Stores
• And more!

Online options include (but are not limited to):

Note: The county does not endorse nor particularly support any of these independent websites/apps. Please remember to check out each site's best practice and safety tips before buying, selling, or swapping.

View/download PDF flyers in English and Spanish:

Recycle

In Oregon, we have a long, strong history and culture of recycling. By recycling right, we’re able to reduce the energy and resources needed to make new products, reduce pollution, and create jobs. In 2023, over 92,000 tons of material was collected in curbside recycling in Clackamas County. 

Recycling right is of utmost importance to maintain the integrity of our recycling system. It is a surprise to many that recycling is localized. What can and cannot go in the recycle bin depends on local processing facility capabilities and limitations. So when your reusable items (water bottles, shopping bags, etc.) eventually break and become unusable, make sure you dispose of them properly (which may mean placing it in the garbage).

Learn to recycle right with the Clackamas County Recycle Guide (available in seven languages). And remember, when in doubt, throw it out! It’s better to place recyclable items in the trash than to place trash in the recycling.

Learn more and view/download recycle guides in seven languages:

Residential garbage and recycling collection customers living in urban unincorporated Clackamas County and within the cities of Canby, Gladstone, Happy Valley, Oregon City, West Linn, and Wilsonville now have the option to recycle even more with Recycle+, a new service from your garbage and recycling company.

Recycle+ offers:  

• Collection of materials not included in standard recycling.  
• Convenient on-call pickups. 
• No subscription required; cancel any time. 

Tip: Consider coordinating pickups with family, friends or neighbors.    

How the program works

You must contact your garbage and recycling company to establish this optional service. Sign up now!

Recycle+ is an on-call, every other week collection service. You must contact your garbage and recycling company to schedule a pickup at least two business days before the scheduled collection day.  

Your garbage and recycling company will determine your Recycle+ collection day, which may be on a different day from your standard garbage and recycling collection. 

Accepted Materials

Printable Recycle+ Guide: English | Español (Spanish)

Plastic film

Plastic film/bags (also known as plastic film packaging):  A soft, flexible, stretchy polyethylene (#2HDPE, #4LDPE) packaging. Bags must be free of food residue.

Film must be contained in the sealed bag provided by your collector.

• Produce bags
• Plastic bags  
• Dry cleaning bags  
• Plastic padded envelopes (no padded manila envelopes)
• Plastic overwrap for paper towels, paper plates, napkins, etc.

Clear plastic #1 clamshell containers

Clamshells must be contained in the sealed bag provided by your collector.

One-piece containers hinged on one side and stamped with #1PET or PETE. Containers must be clear and clean of food residue. No black or other color plastic containers. 

• Fruit containers  
• Egg cartons
• Bakery containers
• Take-out containers 

 

Textiles

Textiles must be clean, however they can be torn, worn or stained.

Textiles must be contained in the sealed bag provided by your collector.

• Clothing
• Bed linens
• Towels/rags  

Tip: Materials are downcycled into wiping cloths and rags. Consider donating usable textiles to reuse organizations.     

Compact fluorescent light bulbs

Bulbs must be contained in a 1-gallon sealed bag to protect workers from mercury exposure should bulbs get broken during handling. This bag is not provided by your collector. 

• Include: Curved or folded fluorescent lamps that fit a regular household lamp.
• Do not include: Long fluorescent tubes used in garages, basements or commercial lighting.

No wishcycling

If you place an item in the purple bin not included in the acceptable list above, it will be left behind in the purple bin on your pickup day. These items may belong in the trash.

Also, do not place any of the acceptable Recycle + items in your weekly recycling cart! These items are must be collected separately because the material recovery facilities are not designed for these additional materials. 

What is wishcycling? While we may have an intention to recycle more, the result of “wishful recycling” makes recycling programs cost more and makes materials sent to recycling companies worth less. Materials placed in the wrong bin is called contamination. Recycling companies want the purest material possible to send to manufacturers to make new products. Contamination causes issues in their processes. It’s important to recycle only what is on the list so our collective effort is successful.

Need a curbside recycling refresher? Review our recycle guide to make sure you are only recycling items in your weekly collection that manufacturers will actually use.

Prepare Materials

You will receive a purple bin and plastic bags from your garbage and recycling company. Separate all materials by type, put the materials in the plastic bags provided and place the bags in the purple bin. Make sure the container lid can close completely to keep materials dry. 

Why plastic bags? Each category of items needs to be kept separate and dry during collection. The plastic bags will be recycled once materials arrive at their final destination. 

Tip: To ensure materials are collected, make sure items are clean, sorted and bagged. Wet materials cannot be recycled. 

Program Cost

Recycle+ costs a small base fee and a pickup fee for each requested pickup. You can set out your Recycle+ curbside or at another location on your property, such as your doorstep or porch (additional fees apply).

Curbside is defined as within five feet of a public or private road. Place your bin out by 6 a.m. on your collection day.

For curbside collection, place your bin near the road so it is clear of sidewalks, driveways, public streets or other rights of way.

For doorstep collection, place your bin visibly near your doorstep or porch.

If you qualify as a person with a disability as identified by Oregon state law and do not share a household with an individual capable of placing your container curbside, you can request non-curbside pickup at no extra charge. Contact your garbage and recycling company for more information.

How to sign up for Recycle+

Have your account information, name, address and a telephone number ready, then contact your garbage and recycling company to schedule a pickup. You’ll receive an 18-gallon purple bin with a lid and bags prior to your first collection day.  

At this time, service is only available in urban unincorporated Clackamas County and within the cities of Canby, Gladstone, Happy Valley, Oregon City, West Linn, and Wilsonville.

Questions or concerns?

Contact your garbage and recycling company for questions, to request service, or for issues related to collection.