Does Palm Beach County recycle? You bet we do! The Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County (SWA) invites you to join your fellow residents in this eco-conscious effort by resolving to Recycle Right in 2024.
In the last fiscal year, county residents placed more than 94,000 tons of recyclables in their blue and yellow recycling bins. That’s almost 190 million pounds of recyclable waste that would’ve otherwise been trashed.
By the end of the fiscal year, more than 78,000 tons of recyclables were sold to mills and factories that could use them in making materials for new products. The top recycled items were:
- Mixed paper: More than 30,800 tons
- Cardboard: More than 17,800 tons
- Glass: More than 15,400 tons
- Plastics: More than 6,700 tons
- Aluminum: More than 1,000 tons
- Cartons (aseptic): More than 42 tons
The SWA understands it can be confusing to know what goes into your yellow recycling bin, what goes into your blue recycling bin, and what should be tossed into the trash. Not all recyclable items are accepted for recycling in Palm Beach County’s dual-stream recycling program. There’s a search tool at swa.org/isitrecyclable to help you see if an item is recyclable in the county’s recycling program. If it is, the tool will tell you which recycling bin to put it into.
Here are some general recycling tips to help you get started.
General recycling tips:
1. Definitely put aluminum cans into the blue recycling bin.
- Surprisingly, they’re the least recycled item in Palm Beach County. However, a recycled can may be back on the shelf in as little as 60 days.
2. Never place a plastic bag into your blue or yellow recycling bin.
- Plastic bags are perfect to reuse as liners for smaller garbage cans, but they wreak havoc in the recycling facility. If you want to recycle them, take them back to your local grocer or other big box store or one of seven SWA Home Chemical & Recycling Centers (HCRCs). Or you can exchange them through the Authority’s Xchange2 program.
3. Recycle all your cardboard boxes.
- Many people are ordering more products online, leaving them with lots of cardboard boxes in their homes. You can place cardboard into the yellow recycling bin. But be sure to break the boxes down and take out the packaging. Excess carboard that will not fit into the bin can be placed aside it for collection. If you have oversized cardboard boxes, there are hundreds of yellow community drop-off containers around Palm Beach County. Find your nearest one at swa.org/wheretorecycle.
4. Plastic caps should stay on plastic bottles, but metal lids should be taken off glass bottles and jars.
- This will help when materials are separated by type at Palm Beach County’s recycling facility.
5. When in doubt, throw it out.
- Trying to recycle things like holiday lights, garden hoses and children’s toys in your blue or yellow recycling bin can contaminate recyclables or even damage recycling processing equipment. This leads to increased costs for everyone.
For new or replacement recycling bins, Palm Beach County residents can call the Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County at 866-NEW-BINS (866-639-2467) or order them online at swa.org/recycleright (for free).
In addition to traditional recyclables, more than 4.6M pounds of home chemicals were collected to be safely disposed of or recycled in 2023. The most dropped-off home chemicals were:
- Latex paint: More than 2,300,000 pounds
- Electronics: More than 786,500 pounds
- Used motor oil: More than 559,500 pounds
- Batteries (lead acid): More than 202,500 pounds
- Cylinders/propane tanks: More than 186,500 pounds
- Corrosives: More than 61,000 pounds
- Pesticides and poisons: More than 35,500 pounds
Though this effort is not part of a traditional recycling program, it demonstrates that our county’s residents take an active role and resolve to dispose of hazardous items responsibly.
Here are some general household hazard waste disposal and recycling tips to help you get started.
General household hazard waste disposal and recycling tips:
1. Batteries
- Single-Use Batteries
These are the most common batteries and come in sizes such as AA, AAA, AAAA, C, D and 9-volt. You can generally find these types of batteries in children’s toys, flashlights, TV remote controls and many other items. Once these single-use batteries stop powering devices, they can be removed and disposed of in the regular trash. - Lithium, Button and Rechargeable Batteries
Lithium and rechargeable batteries include Li-ion, Lithium (single-use), Ni-Cad, NiMH and button batteries. These types of batteries may be found in mobile phones; laptops, tablets, computer peripherals, Bluetooth devices and smart wearables; children’s toys; game controllers; digital cameras; greeting cards; electric toothbrushes; e-bikes and e-scooters; cordless/handheld power tools; vaping devices; remote controls and keyless entry remotes; two-way radios; and wireless headphones, among others. Lithium is highly reactive, and that energy can cause fires when the batteries are damaged or shorted. These types of batteries should never go into the trash or a recycling bin. Responsibly dispose of these batteries at one of seven SWA Home Chemical & Recycling Centers (HCRC) or at any large retailers that have collection boxes inside their lobbies or near their entrances. Further, it’s recommended to place non-conductive tape on the terminals of these batteries to avoid them touching and causing a fire. It’s also advisable to place lithium batteries into separate plastic bags for the same precaution. - Automotive and Marine Batteries
Automotive, marine, or starting batteries are also known as wet-cell lead-acid batteries. These types of batteries can be found in automobiles, boats, snowmobiles, motorcycles, golf carts, all-terrain vehicles, wheelchairs, and other large transportation vehicles. Lead-acid batteries may contain up to 18 pounds of lead and a corrosive acid solution. Because of this, these batteries should not go into the trash or a recycling bin. These batteries should go back to the automobile dealer, automotive parts store or salvage yard where the battery was purchased. They can also be dropped off at one of the SWA’s seven Home Chemical & Recycling Centers. However, electric vehicle batteries are not accepted at any SWA facility. Refer to the dealer only for disposal options. Commercial quantities of batteries may require special disposal. Call 561-687-1100 for details on recycling batteries from your business.
2. Electronics
- Old electronics like cell phones, computers, and TVs are considered household hazardous waste and can be taken to an HCRC for free residential disposal.
3. Light Bulbs
- Fluorescent bulbs, even the little curly-cue compacts, have mercury in them. That’s a hazardous waste. So, all fluorescent bulbs should be taken to an HCRC or other home improvement store.
4. Chemicals
- If your garage is full of home chemicals, much of them can be taken to an HCRC. Old paint, solvents, oil, gasoline, electronics and fluorescent bulbs can all be dropped off at once!
5. Paint
- Do you have old paint? Take it to an HCRC where old latex paint is sent away to be recycled into new paint and donated to Palm Beach County families in need.
Find a comprehensive list of home chemicals that should be properly disposed of at swa.org/hcrc.
Be sure to resolve to take household hazardous waste items to one of the SWA’s seven Home Chemical & Recycling Centers. Here are the SWA’s seven HCRC locations from north county to south county:
- Jupiter
North County Transfer Station and Home Chemical & Recycling Center
14185 Military Trail (SWA Road) in Jupiter
Monday-Friday: 7 a.m.-5 p.m.
Saturday: 7 a.m.-3 p.m. - West Palm Beach
Home Chemical & Recycling Center
6161 N. Jog Road in West Palm Beach
Monday-Friday: 7 a.m.-5 p.m.
Saturday: 7 a.m.–5 p.m. - Belle Glade
Glades Regional Transfer Station and Home Chemical & Recycling Center
1701 State Road 15 in Belle Glade
Monday-Friday: 7:30 a.m.-4 p.m. - Royal Palm Beach
West Central Transfer Station and Home Chemical & Recycling Center
9743 Weisman Way in Royal Palm Beach
Monday-Friday: 7 a.m.-5 p.m.
Saturday: 7 a.m.-3 p.m. - Lantana
Central County Transfer Station and Home Chemical & Recycling Center
1810 Lantana Road in Lantana
Monday-Friday: 7 a.m.-5 p.m.
Saturday: 7 a.m.-12 p.m. - Delray Beach – West
Southwest County Transfer Station and Home Chemical & Recycling Center
13400 South State Road 7 in Delray Beach
Monday-Friday: 7 a.m.-5 p.m.
Saturday: 7 a.m.-3 p.m. - Delray Beach – East
South County Transfer Station and Home Chemical & Recycling Center
1901 SW 4th Ave. in Delray Beach
Monday-Friday: 7 a.m.-5 p.m.
Saturday: 7 a.m.-3 p.m.
Resolve to Recycle Right in 2024 and every day, Palm Beach County!
