Changes in Curbside Recycling Have You Confused?

What week will my recycling be picked up? What's OK to recycle and what's not? of Golden Valley upgraded it recycling program at the beginning of this year, and these questions have been asked a lot.

You can get answers to your recycling questions on the city's website, but Patch has posted that info right here for your convenience. Forget your schedule or what items are OK? Just bookmark this page and come back to it any time in 2012.

So what are the changes?

• Larger cart with lid and wheels. No more bins.
• New hauler is Allied Waste.
• Every-other Friday pick up.
• No more sorting. Just throw all recyclables in the cart.
• Recycle more stuff, including plastics #1-7 and plastic bags.

When does my recycling get picked up?

• See the attached PDF map and determine if you're in the blue zone or in the gray zone, then see the dates below (every other Friday).
  
  
• Blue Zone (mostly north of Hwy 55 and east of Hwy 100):
  
  January 6 & 20
  February 3 & 17
  March 2, 16 & 30
  April 13 & 27
  May 11 & 25
  June 8 & 22
  July 6 & 20
  August 3, 17 & 31
  September 14 & 28
  October 12 & 26
  November 9 & 23
  December 7 & 21
  
  
• Gray Zone (mostly south of Hwy 55 and west of Hwy 100):
  
  January 13 & 27
  February 10 & 24
  March 9 & 23
  April 6 & 20
  May 4 & 18
  June 1, 15 & 29
  July 13 & 27
  August 10 & 24
  September 7 & 21
  October 5 & 19
  November 2, 16 & 30
  December 14 & 28

What CAN I recycle?

• Newspaper & newspaper inserts
• Magazines & catalogs
• All junk mail & envelopes
• Cardboard (break down boxes)
• Office & school papers (all colors)
• Phone books
• Cereal & cracker-type boxes
• Brown paper sacks/bags
• Aluminum, steel, & tin cans
• Glass bottles & jars
• NEW! Plastics: #1 thru #7—bottles, cups, food containers, tubs, bowls
• NEW! Yogurt cups & butter/whip cream tubs
• Plastic milk jugs & paper milk cartons
• NEW! Plastic bags (from retailers)
• Juice boxes & other paper cartons

What's NOT OK to recycle?

• No garbage
• No food waste
• No food tainted items (used paper plates, paper towels, or paper napkins)
• No pizza boxes
• No egg cartons
• No wax-coated cartons
• No ice-cream cartons
• No aluminum foil
• No styrofoam (like cups/plates & packaging)
• No aerosol cans, propane tanks or helium tanks
• No batteries

Missed Pick-up?

If your recycling is at your curb by 6:30 am on collection day and it still doesn't get picked up, call Allied Waste at 952-941-5174 before noon the following Monday. Tell the customer service representative you are calling to report a missed pick-up and leave your address.

For additional questions, just visit the city's website.