Recycling Do's and Don'ts

Ocean City participates in the Cape May County Municipal Utilities Authority's Single Stream Recycling Program. It is important for residents to understand what can and cannot be recycled. Placing the wrong materials in the recycling stream can cause entire truckloads to be rejected. We MUST clean up the recycling stream.
 
 
DO'S

1. The single stream program is for: paper, cardboard, bottles, jars, jugs and containers made of plastic, aluminum, glass and steel/tin.
2. See and bookmark our Trash and Recycling FAQ for complete information on recycling in Ocean City.
3. See and bookmark the county's complete guide to single stream recycling .
4. Use the county's interactive Waste Wizard tool  if you're uncertain what can and cannot be recycled.

 
DON'TS

1. CARDINAL RULE NO. 1: Do not place your recycling in plastic trash bags, and do not place plastic bags in your recycling.  NO PLASTIC BAGS.
2. CARDINAL RULE NO. 2: All caps and tops from cans, bottles and jugs should be put in the trash. DO NOT RECYCLE CAPS.
3. CARDINAL RULE NO. 3: Do not recycle beverage cups or food-contaminated boxes and containers.
4. CARDINAL RULE NO. 4: Styrofoam is not recyclable in Cape May County and should not be put into the single stream.

RIGID PLASTICS: Bulky mixed rigid plastic (non-bottle items larger than 2 1/2 gallons) should be disposed of as trash.

TRASH CONTAINERS: A trash container is NOT a single-stream material. It is a rigid plastic material and should be disposed of as trash.

SCRAP METAL: Scrap metal is not accepted in the single-stream recycling program. The ONLY metals accepted in the program are steel/tin cans. Scrap metal less than 20 feet in length can be recycled at the Shelter Road Recycling Center. This kind of material in the single-stream recycling flow can cause damage to equipment and injury to workers.