Recycling and Composting

The waste management hierarchy involves three main steps: reducing, reusing, and recycling, often referred to as the "3Rs." The best way to handle items we no longer need is to think about using materials wisely. We can do this by:

• Choosing reuse over single-use,
• Looking for secondhand opportunities rather than buying things new, and
• Recycling right so items can be turned into new products 

A circular economy focuses on sharing, reusing, repairing, and recycling materials and products for as long as possible.  This reduces the harmful environmental impacts caused by the mining, manufacturing, and transportation involved in creating all of the products we use in our daily lives. A circular economy will also help to reach the state's goal of significantly cutting down on waste sent to landfills and incinerators by 85% by the year 2050. 

To make recycling work well, it's important that we put the right items in the recycling bin. Putting incorrect items in the recycling bin can negatively impact the recyclability of certain items or reduce the value of other recyclables. Recycling right helps recyclables be turned into new products which reduces our reliance on natural resources. For tips on how to recycle right, visit Recycle Right NY or contact your local recycling coordinator.

New Yorkers generate materials that are not always appropriate for placement in their recycling bins with other common recyclable materials. Fortunately, several product stewardship and extended producer responsibility collection and recycling programs are available for these special items. Links to product-specific collection and recycling programs are available below.

Product stewardship is the act of managing a product throughout its entire life cycle to minimize its associated health, safety, environmental, and social impacts. While a product’s manufacturer has the most control over the product’s impact, other stakeholders, such as suppliers, retailers, and consumers, also play important roles. Product stewardship can either be voluntary or required by law, with mandated end-of-life collection and recycling programs structured in a variety of different ways. Extended producer responsibility is a mandatory form of product stewardship that places the primary financial and managerial responsibility for end-of-life management of a product on its manufacturer, shifting the burden away from municipalities and taxpayers.

Organic materials are materials that come from living things and are readily biodegradable, making them a valuable resource rather than a waste.  It is the organic matter and nutrients in these materials that lead to the useful products (e.g., compost, biogas, digestate, etc.) created at organics recycling facilities. From farm wastes to residential lawns, cafeteria food scraps to biosolids, organic materials are a part of life. Managing these materials through reduction, reuse, and recycling is a high priority in New York State. Learn more about composting and organic materials management in New York State.