Construction Materials - Not Built for the Blue Bin

Summertime often comes with home improvement projects, yard upgrades, DIY repairs and renewed inspiration for long overdue projects. With those projects comes the need for various kinds of construction materials. It’s easy to assume these materials are recyclable and can go in your blue bin.

However, while some items may look recyclable at first glance, most construction and renovation materials are actually not accepted in your blue bin recycling service – either due to their weight, composition, or contamination risk.

Here are some of the most common offenders that we see into our plant and so tips for how to properly dispose of residential and commercial construction items.

• Rocks, bricks, and concrete – These materials tend to be heavy, dense and abrasive and can damage recycling equipment. These materials are not accepted in your blue bin recycling.
  • What to do? Do not place these in your curbside blue bin. Instead, you can take these to a construction and waste depot or your local transfer station!
• Wood scraps and sawdust – Even untreated wood isn’t recyclable in your blue bin. It can potentially contaminate other materials and even jam our sorting machinery.
  • What to do? The best thing to do is try to reuse if possible. If not, untreated wood is a perfect candidate for composting. If the wood is treated, ask your local transfer station if the accept wood waste.
• Rebar and scrap metal – Rebar and long, thin scrap metal can pose a serious risk to our worker’s safety and to our machinery because metal can wrap around our equipment causing them to malfunction.
  • What to do? Many metal recycling depots accept scrap steel, rebar and pipes. Check your municipality for drop-off locations.
• Broken tools or equipment – Tools often contain mixed materials like metal, rubber, plastic and batteries, making them unrecyclable in your blue bin service.
  • What to do? If they are in working condition, donate them. If they are broken some electronic or tool recycling depots may accept them.

Putting these items in your blue bin inhibits the recycling process down, causes damage to equipment and poses a serious risk to our workers. 

Please do your part to keep these construction materials, even in small quantities, out of your blue bins.