Trash, Recycling, Yard Waste & Food Waste/Composting

Managing your waste disposal needs

Trash Collection

Thursday is the normal collection day for trash, yard waste and recyclables in New Albany. However, collection days may vary from time to time due to holidays, weather conditions and other factors. Please make sure to place all trash, recycling and yard waste at the curb before 7 am. Collection is provided by Rumpke, which bills residents directly. For more information, please click here or call Rumpke at 1-800-828-8171.

The quantity of trash is not limited per household. Bulk materials such as boards, fencing, paneling or carpeting should be cut into four-foot by four-foot lengths and tied in 18-inch bundles weighing no more than 50 pounds. Loose materials such as rocks, sod, bricks, blocks, dirt, sand and cement must be bagged, boxed or placed in trash cans, and weigh no more than 50 pounds. Cardboard boxes used as receptacles will not be collected if they have become wet. Furniture or appliances that are in one piece will be picked up on regular collection days. Upholstered items such as mattresses and furniture must be wrapped in plastic.

Unacceptable Items:

Trash of a commercial nature (generated by businesses, contractors hired to perform services for homeowners, etc.) will not be collected.

Additionally, the following items should not be placed in the trash:

  • Appliances containing freon (refrigerators, freezers and air conditioners)
  • Lead-acid batteries (car and motorcycle batteries)
  • Liquid waste, including used motor oil and paint
  • Tires
  • Yard Waste
  • Explosive items, radioactive waste, and other materials that could be dangerous to the workers collecting your trash.

Appliance Collection

A certified technician must remove CFC (chlorofluorocarbons) from Freon-containing appliances, including refrigerators, freezers and air conditioners. In preparation for collection, the appliances must have a certificate of removal on it. Rumpke can also remove the CFC for a fee of $65. Please call Rumpke to make the necessary arrangements for CFC removal at 1-800-828-8171 prior to collection.

Missed Collection

New Albany strives to provide the best services possible. If you have any problems with pick-ups or other concerns, please contact us at 614-855-0076.

Extended Vacancy

If your residence will be vacant for three months or more, please call 614-855-0076 to suspend waste services during your absence.

Senior Discount

Residents age 60 or older who are head of the household qualify for a senior discount of 10% off base collection rates. For more information, please call 614-855-0076; or, to apply directly for the discount, please call Rumpke directly at 1-800-828-8171.

Recycling

Rumpke has expanded the list of acceptable materials. Residents can typically recycle the following:

  • Glass Bottles & Jars (all colors)
  • Metal Cans: Aluminum cans, steel cans and lids, metal cups, empty aerosol cans with the lids and tips removed
  • Plastic Bottles, Cups (not Solo brand), Jugs and Tubs (empty, crush, reattach lid): Bottles and jugs that have a small mouth and wider base, such as milk jugs, soda bottles, laundry detergent bottles, water bottles, shampoo bottles and contact solution bottles; also, a wide variety of plastic tubs such as butter, cottage cheese, and sour cream tubs, fruit, pudding, and applesauce cups and all yogurt containers.
  • Paper: newspaper, magazines, cardboard, cups, mixed office paper and envelopes, paperboard (cereal boxes), pizza boxes free of food debris and grease, telephone books and catalogs
  • Cartons: food and beverage cartons, such as milk, juice, soup, wine, broth and other cartons.
  • Beginning November 1, 2024, clear plastic clamshell containers will be accepted as part of the curbside and drop-off recycling programs in Franklin County.

list of acceptable items to recycle

Why Recycling Matters

The amount of waste created by central Ohio residents and businesses is staggering.  In fact, every resident generates an average of 9 to 10 pounds of waste each day, of which half comes to the landfill.  With only so much landfill space available, it’s more important than ever that we reuse, recycle, compost or divert as much as we can.

Recycling Tips

  • Mix all items together – no separation required
  • Empty all bottles, jugs and cans
  • No need to remove labels
  • For plastic bottles, empty, crush and reattach lids
  • For cartons, remove plastic caps and straws
  • NEVER place medical sharps or needles in the recycling
  • DON’T use plastic bags

 

NOT for Recycling
No plastic bags, cassette tapes, styrofoam cups, plastic party cups (“Solo” is one common brand), K-cups, plastic coffee cup lids, straws, take-out containers and clamshell containers (like those used for strawberries and blueberries), bed sheets, hangers, metal chains, garden hoses, batteries, needles, syringes, electronics, polystyrene foam, buckets, butter tubs, car parts, food, yard waste, light bulbs, drinking glasses, ceramics, pots, pans, and scrap metal.

Questions about Proper Recycling?
Still have questions about what’s accepted or not accepted for recycling? Visit SWACO’s Frequently Asked Questions page.

Have Unwanted or Hard to Recycle Items?
SWACO operates a Drop-Off Recycling program to serve Franklin County residents. The New Albany area drop-off location can be found at 5101 Swickard Woods Blvd , New Albany, OH, 43054. Click here to learn more.

Yard Waste Collection

info showing which materials can be disposed of and which cannot

Rumpke collects yard waste on the same service day as refuse and recycling. Yard waste should be put in paper yard waste bags or a trash can marked for yard waste only.  Branches or twigs that are cut down to four feet in length and no larger than two inches in diameter must be tied and bundled for collection.

Acceptable Yard Waste Items:

  • Leaves
  • Grass Clippings
  • Shrubs
  • Weeds and Brush
  • Shrubbery
  • Twigs and small branches (less than four inches in diameter)
  • Christmas trees – whole trees, no decorations, no lights, no tinsel, no garland. Do not place trees in plastic bags.

 

Unacceptable Items:
Only yard waste is permitted in yard waste bags and containers.  Please do not place food/pet waste, dirt or rocks, plastic bags or bottles, sod, soil, or plastic plant pots into yard waste bags or containers. Please do not use plastic bags to collect yard waste. Keep it loose or use compostable bags.

Holiday Trash and Recycling

Rumpke collects holiday trees for disposal during regularly scheduled trash, recycling and yard waste collection. Do not place the tree in a plastic bag and please remove all decorations. Residents should place the tree by the curb with regular trash and recycling for collection.

Did you receive a new TV for the holiday? Or maybe new clothes and appliances? If you need to make room for the new stuff, make sure you’re getting rid of the old stuff properly. Visit SWACO’s Reuse and Recycling Search Tool to learn more about how to recycle common household items.

Pharmaceutical Disposal

Information on how to properly dispose of Prescription Drugs can be found at SWACO’s website.

Proper Disposal of Dangerous and Difficult Materials

Learn how to properly dispose of needles and “sharps” at the Columbus Public Health website.

Household Hazardous Waste

Learn how to properly dispose of Household Hazardous Waste such as fluorescent light bulbs, lawn chemicals, and old gasoline on SWACO’s website.

Trash, Recycling, and Yard Waste Form

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    Food Waste/Composting

    New Albany households and businesses can collect food waste at home or in the office using buckets, small bins, or plastic/glass food storage containers with snap lids. Once you register using the form below, you can drop off your compostable food waste at any of the any of the following compost drop-off locations: the Public Service building (7800 Bevelhymer Road), Village Hall (99 W. Main Street), the Temple Beth Shalom/All Saints Episcopal Church parking lot (5089 Johnstown Road), and our newest location at Taylor Farm Park (5526 E. Dublin-Granville Road). Drop-off sites are serviced weekly by GoZERO.

    The following items are accepted:

    • Food Scraps
    • Bones & Shellfish
    • Meat
    • Dairy
    • Paper Napkins & Paper Towels
    • BPI Certified Compostable Bags* (use of these liners is optional, but if used, they must be BPI certified)

    The following items are NOT accepted:

    • Plastic Bags
    • Pet Waste
    • Yard Waste
    A woman empties a black compost bucket into a large green compost bin outdoors, with a wooden fence and trees in the background.

    Composting Program Registration

    Every day, central Ohio residents and businesses throw out a million pounds of food. Food waste is the largest portion of the waste stream and accounts for 15% of all material in the Franklin County Sanitary Landfill. That’s a lot of food that’s going to waste – food that could be feeding hungry people or, at minimum, returned to the earth in the form of a nutrient-rich soil enhancement. Together, we can save more than food and make a difference for our community. To find out how, visit SaveMoreThanFood.org to sign up for the newsletter and download resources to stop food waste today.

    The Save More Than Food Campaign can help you to reduce food waste all around the community with specialized resources and tools for each of the following environments:

    Hands holding a bowl of soup, one half full and the other half empty, with text "Wasted Food = Wasted Opportunity" and a logo reading "Save More Than Food, Make a Difference".

    Contact Us

    Public Service
    7800 Bevelhymer Road
    New Albany, OH 43054

    Phone: 614-855-0076
    Fax: 614-855-8585
    publicservice@newalbanyohio.org