Garbage and Recycling

Trash, old appliances, mattresses, tires, furniture, oil, antifreeze and pesticides are a few of the things dumped on public lands, sidewalks, alleyways and waterways, putting human health and wildlife at risk. If you see people actively dumping items, do not confront them. Note the vehicle’s license plate number, make and model, items dumped and location. You can report this information to your local law enforcement.

Cleanup on Public Property

On public roadways within Clackamas County

• Clackamas County Road Concerns (phone or online form)

On public land within the Metro Urban Growth Boundary

• Metro Regional Illegal Dumping Patrol (RID Patrol)

On forest lands

• Clackamas County forest lands
  • ClackCo Forestry Department     
    503-742-4414
• State owned land
  • Oregon Department of Forestry
    503-945-7200
• Federally owned land
  • US Forest Service – Clackamas River Ranger District 
    503-622-2009
  • Bureau of Land Management – Northwest Oregon District
    503-375-5646

Cleanup on Private Property

Clean up of illegal dumps on private property is the responsibility of the property owner. Concerns about the collection of waste on a neighbor’s property can be reported to code enforcement.

Within unincorporated County

• Clackamas County Code Enforcement

Within city limits

• Contact your city’s code enforcement

The Sustainability & Solid Waste program sets the rates and service standards for franchised garbage and recycling companies within unincorporated Clackamas County, and for the cities* of Happy Valley and Barlow. Our goal is to ensure that solid waste collection services are provided to residents and businesses safely, cost-effectively and efficiently, and in a way that supports the benefits of recovering materials from the system.

*If you live in a different city, please contact the city for your garbage and recycling rates. 

Garbage Cart Sizes

The size of your garbage cart and frequency of collection will impact your monthly bill. 

Codes, Administrative Regulations, & Policies

Codes

Clackamas County code related to Solid Waste and Waste Management: 

• Clackamas County Code 
  • Chapter 10.03 Solid Waste and Waste Management.
  • Chapter 10.04 Recycling License

Administrative Regulations

Standards set by Clackamas County for garbage, recycling and yard debris service.

• Administrative Regulations

Inclement Weather Policy

From the Franchisee General Responsibilities section of the Administrative Regulations for Clackamas County Solid Waste and Recycling Collection Services for Franchisee and Customer.

Franchisees may postpone collection when weather conditions make driving hazardous. In situations where garbage, recycling, and yard debris collections are all postponed to subsequent week(s), franchisees will give priority to the collection of garbage. 

• Garbage 
  The franchisee will pick up postponed collections of garbage as weather and road conditions permit. If collection must be postponed to a subsequent week(s), the cumulative amount of the current subscribed service level will be collected.
• Recycling 
  Collection will be postponed to a subsequent week(s) as weather and road conditions permit. Resumption of recycling collection may be postponed past the following week if there have been several days of inclement weather and the franchisee is using available staff and trucks to catch up on garbage collections.
• Yard Debris 
  Collection will be postponed to a subsequent week(s) as weather and road conditions permit. Resumption of yard debris collection may be postponed past the following week if there have been several days of inclement weather and the franchisee is using available staff and trucks to catch up on garbage and recycling collections. When collection resumes the cumulative amount of the current subscribed service level will be collected.
• Notification of Postponed Collection 
  The franchisee will notify Clackamas County by 10 a.m. by telephone or e-mail on the days that collection will be postponed. The franchisee will update their voicemail and web site at least daily, notifying customers of postponed collections.
• Billing 
  Postponed collections are not considered missed collections because the service is rendered in due course. Credits are not available for postponed collections due to inclement weather.

Whether you are at home, work, or school, the materials you can recycle are the same. All items should be empty and dry before going into your recycling bin.

Printable Recycle Guides

Businesses: Print or request workplace recycling tools

Still Have Questions?

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.

Instagram: You can also direct message pictures of questionable items to @recycleornot on Instagram.

Play the game: Test your recycling knowledge with this interactive game.

Contact your garbage and recycling company to:

• Start or stop service
• Request an additional service or make changes to existing service
• Report a missed pickup or collection issue
• Update your contact information
• Ask billing or collection service questions

Are you unsure which garbage and recycling company services your address?

Company Websites and Phone Numbers

Reach Your Environmental Goals

Does your organization have other environmental goals or priorities? Our trained sustainability advisors can assist with: 

• Sustainable purchasing plans 
• Waste prevention 
• Education for employees 
• Coordinating with custodial providers and property managers 
• Starting an employee green team 
• Keeping you informed about sustainability through our quarterly newsletter 
• And much more! 
   

Sustainability Benefit Businesses

• Enhance brand and competitive advantage 
• Increase productivity and reduce costs 
• Attract new customers and employees 
• Conserve resources 
• Provide a healthier workspace for staff 
• Build stronger relationships with customers and your community 

Free Tools and Resources

Receive internal recycling boxes, posters and decals to make it easy to recycle.

Request assistance and supplies

We know businesses are busy, and it can be confusing to find the programs that will help your business. Our advisors are a one-stop resource that help you get what you need to make your business more sustainable.

• Available to all. Our services are provided at no cost to any Clackamas County business. We have advisors that speak English and Spanish, and can provide support through translation services in other languages. 
• Personalized consultations. Identify sustainability solutions that make sense for your workplace. 
• Recommendations and referrals. Take the guesswork out of operating more sustainably. We can connect you to other environmental programs.
• Ongoing support. Running a sustainable business is not a one-and-done thing. It takes continuous improvement. We’re here to support you along your journey. 
• Connect and learn. Gain insight from others that value sustainable business practices. 

These organizations and businesses in Clackamas County collect commercial food scraps to divert material from landfills, reduce carbon emissions and create alternative forms of energy.

Canby | Clackamas/North Clackamas | Happy Valley | Lake Oswego | Milwaukie | Oak Grove | West Linn | Wilsonville

Canby

• El Chillito
• Cutsforth Thriftway
• Fred Meyer
• Head Start Barlow Center
• Roxy's Island Grill
• Willamette Valley Country Club
• William Knight Elementary School

Clackamas/North Clackamas

• Baja Fresh
• Cheesecake Factory
• Chipotle Mexican Grill
• Costco
• Courtyard by Marriott
• Fred Meyer – Clackamas
• Fred Meyer – Johnson Creek
• McMenamins Sunnyside
• Mio Sushi
• Nordstrom’s Café
• Nothing Bundt Cakes
• Original Thai BBQ
• The Ram Restaurant & Brewery
• Starbucks - Clackamas Crossing
• Trader Joe’s

Happy Valley

• Café Yumm!
• City of Happy Valley - City Hall
• Fred Meyer
• Killer Burger
• New Seasons
• Peet’s Coffee
• Pizza Hut - Sunnyside and Misty Dr.
• Sports on Tap
• Starbucks - Sunnyside and Misty Dr.

Lake Oswego

• 365 by Whole Foods Market
• Animal Care Group of Lake Oswego
• Babica Hen Cafe
• Chuckie Pies
• City of Lake Oswego-City Hall
• Colliers International Centerpointe
• Crowne Plaza
• Elephant’s Deli
• Forest Hills Elementary School
• Gubanc’s Pub and Restaurant
• Hallinan Elementary School
• Kyra’s Bake Shop
• Lake Grove Elementary School
• Lake Oswego Adult Community Center
• Lake Oswego Farmers’ Market
• Lake Oswego Junior High School
• Lake Oswego Parks and Recreation
• Lake Theater and Café
• Lakeridge High School
• Lakeridge Junior High School
• Mary’s Woods Retirement Community
• New Seasons
• Oak Creek Elementary School
• Riccardo’s Ristorante
• River Grove Elementary
• Trader Joe’s
• Tucci Ristorante
• Westlake Fire Station
• Westridge Elementary School
• Zupan’s Markets

Milwaukie

• Casa de Tamales
• Cha Cha Cha 
• Clackamas County Corrections Center
• Dave’s Killer Bread
• Milwaukie Station
• Providence Community Teaching Kitchen
• Providence Milwaukie Hospital
• River Road House
• Rohst Coffee Co
• Safeway 
• Spirits on Jefferson
• Super Burrito Express

Oak Grove

• The Bomber Restaurant
• Flying Pie Pizzeria
• Fred Meyer
• Rose Villa Retirement Community
• Sushi Kata
• Willamette View

West Linn

• Bolton Primary School
• Cedaroak Park Primary School
• Market of Choice
• Renew Juice
• Stafford Primary School
• Starbucks
• Trillium Creek Primary School
• Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market

Wilsonville

• Bon Appétit at Mentor Graphics
• Café Yumm!
• Coffee Creek Correctional Facility
• Costco
• Coca Cola Bottling Co.
• Rockwell Collins

Twenty percent of waste sent to landfills in our region is food — about 170,000 tons per year. This food loss would fill 5,000 semi-trucks each year.

Measuring and analyzing food waste can help lower food purchasing costs, eliminate unwanted waste, and conserve the soil, water and energy resources that are used to grow, pack and ship food. We can provide personalized assistance, best practices, tools and resources to support your waste prevention efforts.

Assessment Opportunities

• waste audit
• purchasing practices
• inventory and food storage
• processing and handling of food
• food preparation practices and uses for excess prepped food
• food donation and composting

Why Implement Food Waste Prevention Strategies?

• food cost savings
• lower garbage fees
• reduce waste
• less greenhouse gas impact and preserve natural resources
• stronger relationships with customers and employees

Tips From Your Peers

• Food waste reduction champions from Washington County
• How 8 Portland restaurants minimize food waste
• Hotel|Kitchen Case Study from the Kimpton Hotel Monaco Portland

Food Waste Tools and Guides

For an in-depth look at food waste at a national level, below you will find the latest reports, efforts and strategies.

• Sustainable Management of Food: Tools to help measure and track the amount, type and the source of food and packaging waste.
• Food Recovery Challenge: Organizations pledge to improve their sustainable food management practices and report results.
• U.S. 2030 Food Loss and Waste Reduction Goal: The federal government is seeking to work with communities, organizations and businesses along with partners in state, tribal and local government to reduce food loss and waste by 50 percent over the next 15 years.
• Further with Food: An online hub developed by the EPA, USDA and 10 other prominent organizations providing key information and solutions to reduce food loss and waste.
• ReFED: A data-driven guide for businesses, government, funders and nonprofits to collectively reduce food waste at scale.

Prevention Strategies for Restaurants

By tracking food waste and understanding how food is purchased, stored and utilized in your establishment, you can prevent food waste from going to landfills, and reduce food and garbage costs.

• Tracking (We have tools to help you)
  • Create baseline data through an audit or self-assessment
  • Track wasted food daily or weekly
  • Assess data
  • Implement changes from food loss findings
• Purchasing
  • Check your inventory before placing orders
  • Use information from tracking waste to modify future orders
  • Adjust purchasing policies to reduce excess food purchases
• Food storage
  • Adopt an internal food dating system - first in, first out
  • Always use proper food storage and handling practices
• Food preparation
  • Use information from tracking waste to modify daily prep practices
  • Modify food preparation and par levels to minimize waste
• Menu
  • Implement more cook-to-order items
  • Monitor and adjust selections to reduce frequently uneaten or wasted items
  • Heat smaller portions
  • Set out smaller portions on buffets and salad bars
  • Repurpose leftovers and excess to create soups or specials
• Employee training/awareness
  • Reduce prep waste
  • Increase proper food handling
  • Decrease improper cooking
• Divert your waste
  • Donate surplus food that will not be used
  • Separate food scraps to collect for compost

Prevention Strategies for Grocers

Understanding what you are wasting is the first step in evaluating and implementing actions that can reduce food waste, raise awareness around waste prevention and reduce costs.

• Tracking (We have tools to help you)
  • Create baseline data through an audit or self-assessment
  • Track food waste/food used by department
  • Assess data
  • Implement changes from food loss findings
  • Track results of any changes that could impact food waste
• Purchasing
  • Check your inventory before placing orders
  • Use what you learn from tracking waste to modify orders
  • Adjust purchasing policies to reduce excess food purchases
• Food storage
  • Adopt an internal food dating system - first in, first out
  • Always use proper food storage and handling practices
• Food preparation
  • Track leftovers/wasted food to modify daily prep practices
  • Modify food preparation and par levels to minimize waste
• Menu
  • Implement more cook-to-order items
  • Monitor and adjust ready-to-eat food selections to reduce frequently uneaten or wasted items
  • Set out smaller portions in cases and on buffets or salad bars
  • Use culls and soon to be outdated foods in prepared foods, bakery and other departments
• Employee training/awareness
  • Reduce prep waste
  • Increase proper food handling
  • Decrease improper cooking
  • Identify and divert foods properly
    • culls and soon to be out of date items repurposed within the store
    • donation
    • compost
• Divert your waste
  • Donate surplus food that will not be used
  • Separate food scraps to collect for compost

Contact Us

We can offer personalized assistance to help identify waste and relevant solutions to integrate into your business’s daily operation. Set up a program and train staff. Email us at lis@clackamas.us or call 503-742-4458.

Put food to good use through a donation program.

Identify food to be donated

• What type of shelf-stable, perishable or prepared foods could be donated?
• What is the average amount of food to be donated and how often: every day, once a week or once a month?

Find a local food rescue agency

• Oregon Food Bank agency locator
• A Sustainability Advisor can help to identify potential partnerships within your community

Set up a process for donation

• Work with a chosen agency or a Sustainability Advisor to set up a process to identify, gather and store food for donation and create a pick-up schedule.
• Free resources are available to help get your donation program started.
  • Durable containers with lids
  • Food grade plastic bags
  • Date labels, decals and posters

Train staff

• Train employees to identify, label and store food properly for donation.

Questions and program support

Our Sustainability Advisors can help. Email us at lis@clackamas.us or call 503-742-4458.

More information: Frequently Asked Questions

For additional questions, email us at lis@clackamas.us or call 503-742-4458 to speak with a Sustainability Advisor.

• Liability
• Tax benefits
• Donation considerations
• Organizations that accept food donations

Liability

I am worried about liability. Am I protected?
Yes, you are protected by both state and federal laws when you donate food in good faith. The federal Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act and Oregon Laws (ORS Chapter 30.890 and 30.892) state that the donor shall not be subject to civil or criminal liability arising from the nature, age, packaging, or condition of apparently wholesome food or an apparently fit grocery product that is donated in good faith to a nonprofit organization for ultimate distribution to needy individuals.

Tax benefits

Is there a tax benefit for donating food?
The federal enhanced tax deduction for food donation, Internal Revenue Code 170(e)(3), states that businesses may be eligible to deduct some of the cost to produce the food and part of the lost profit.

For more information about how the deduction works, visit Harvard Food Law and Policy Clinic and consult your accountant for eligibility requirements.

Donation considerations

What do I need to consider before donating food?
Food rescue agencies and non-profits need to assess the time, effort and coordination necessary to pick up donated food. For example, a one-time donation of food may not be worth the coordination necessary by an agency to obtain it. Ideally, food donation recipients seek consistent or larger donations. An agency may take smaller donations, but a call to check beforehand is recommended.

The following questions are important to consider for your business and the food assistance agencies you may partner with.

• Is this a one-time (or infrequent) donation?
• If this is potentially a regular donation, what is the average amount of food to be donated, and how often — weekly, monthly – is it likely to happen?
• What type of food will be donated: shelf-stable, perishable or ready-to-eat?
• Can you deliver this donation or does it need to be picked up?
• If it needs to be picked up, can it be stored or refrigerated for a short time (a few hours to a few days) to allow the collection agency time to coordinate the pick-up?
• If necessary, do you have containers to donate food in? Are they disposable or reusable? Will the food be donated in single portions or in large portions that may need to be repacked?

Organizations that accept food donations

What types of organizations accept food and what do they accept?
The kind of food items you have to donate (shelf-stable, perishable or ready-to-eat) will determine what type of agency to work with. Please note that some agencies help their clients with food in multiple ways. Some general guidelines for organizations include:

• Food Bank/Pantry: The service offered usually mirrors a shopping-style experience that allows clients to pick and choose items that are shelf-stable, fresh or frozen from each category of food.
• Meal Site: This service tends to consist of a hot meal, dessert and a beverage.
• Emergency/Supplemental Food Box: This is a prepacked bag or box of food that consists of pantry staples and shelf-stable items that can be supplemented with fresh and frozen items.

Accepted foods and other items*

Shelf-stable (bolded items in high demand)

• Bulk foods
  • Canned and packaged foods
  • Desserts and sweets
  • Breads and other baked goods
  • Baby formula/food
  • Pet food
  • Toiletries
• Perishable (bolded items in high demand)
  • Dairy
  • Meat
  • Seafood
  • Frozen foods
  • Produce
  • Ready-to-eat foods that have not been opened
  • Prepared foods that have not already been served

*Please contact individual agencies to confirm what they can and cannot accept.

How do I find an organization in my area to donate to?

• Oregon Food Bank agency locator
• Our Sustainability Advisors can help you identify potential partnerships within your community – just call 503-742-4458.

Donating food is a great way to ensure the edible food you cannot use goes to families or individuals in need. Not only is this the best and highest use for unwanted food, donation is also tax deductible and is protected by Good Samaritan laws.

Get Started

While steps can be taken to plan and prepare food carefully, sometimes leftovers and unused ingredients are inevitable. Food banks, pantries and meal sites can take some donations. Join area grocers, restaurants, caterers and food service companies that are helping people who experience hunger.

Additional Tips

Find out more details on liability, tax benefits, and other considerations on our FAQ page. If you are a representative from a food assistance program, there’s more information relevant to your organization here as well. 

Download the Business Guide to Donating Food flyer

Why donate food?

• Feed hungry people in your community.
• Divert edible food from the landfill and avoid costly disposal fees.
• Qualify for tax deductions.
• Build stronger relationships with customers, your community and local organizations.

Contact us

Our Sustainability Advisors can work with your business to help you find organizations to donate to in your community, set up a program and train staff. Email us at lis@clackamas.us or call 503-742-4458.