Residential Organics Recycling

Organic material comes from anything living – plants and animals. Organic waste includes grass clippings, leaves, twigs, shrubbery, weeds, and garden trimmings as usual. In general, foods that may now go into the organic waste bin include meat, fish, dairy, fruit, vegetables, breads, pastas, grains and plate scrapings. Your waste hauler will provide very specific instructions. If in doubt, consult your local hauler as instructions may differ from hauler to hauler and by city.  

Residents will receive specific instructions from their waste hauler regarding any changes to existing bins. Changes are occurring on varying schedules and may require residents to place existing carts out for servicing. Keep an eye out for notices with your hauler billing, by mail and online, such as your hauler website or city page. 

Check with your property manager or landlord for instructions. Multifamily housing units may treat organic waste disposal very differently in each area or complex.

The law takes effect January 1, 2022. All residents, commercial businesses and organizations will be required to recycle organic waste, including food, to help  reduce greenhouse gas emissions from landfills. For details, click here. 

A variety of factors impact these new changes and may result in bill changes depending on your location and contracted waste hauler. You should have received information regarding any changes from your hauler.  

Specific instructions may vary by hauler or city. Residents and business owners are encouraged to seek specific information from your waste hauler’s website or by phone. The County of Orange provides hauler contracts to unincorporated areas. Service guides for County unincorporated areas may be found in the chart above.

For residents who live in cities within OC, click the following link to view a list of Residential Waste Haulers.

For business owners who operate within a city in OC, click the following link to view a list of Commercial Haulers.

Each hauler has its own processes, so we recommend you read the information provided by your specific waste hauler. Many haulers are providing service guides, town halls and other mailings or website information to help answer these details. 

Paper products such as newspaper or lightly soiled napkins may be allowed in your organic waste bin. Your hauler will provide specific details on these items. For many haulers, compostable-labeled items and bags may not be acceptable at this time for various reasons related to processing. 

There are many optional measures residents can take to help reduce odors or pests. Haulers will provide information specific to the bins and service provided for your area. There are various resources available online including how to reduce food waste at home, freezing food for leftovers, or how to safely keep food waste stored until placing into your bins on your regularly scheduled pick up days. 

No. This is a mandated requirement by the State of California.

Haulers will be required to conduct audits to monitor contamination and report compliance of organic waste recycling. Most cities and haulers will be working with residents to help educate on proper organics recycling and may initially provide notifications as needed. All cities, special districts and unincorporated areas are required to meet state mandated compliance or risk financial penalties, which may result in fines to non-compliant residents or possible denial of service for contaminated bins.