{"id":4296,"date":"2026-07-11T20:07:16","date_gmt":"2026-07-11T20:07:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296"},"modified":"2026-07-11T20:07:16","modified_gmt":"2026-07-11T20:07:16","slug":"10-things-san-jose-says-residents-should-keep-out-of-recycling-bins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296","title":{"rendered":"10 things San Jose says residents should keep out of recycling bins"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n

Ten items are frequently being thrown into the wrong bins in San Jose, prompting city officials to release a list targeting the city\u2019s worst recycling offenders.<\/p>\n

Read more Judge tosses remnants of Proud Boys seditious conspiracy case after Trump\u2019s broad clemency<\/a><\/p>\n

The items were identified during a citywide sampling of roughly 17,000 single-family recycling carts conducted between January and April. Workers discovered a total of 20,000 incorrectly recycled items across the city, with plastic wrap and film plastic alone accounting for nearly 31% of the total banned items.<\/p>\n

The city says these misplaced items lead to increased costs for San Jose\u2019s recycling contractors to \u201cproperly sort and dispose of these items.\u201d<\/p>\n

RELATED: What to do with millions of old batteries from e-bikes, law tools, and power stations? Companies may be required to take them back<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe City of San Jos\u00e9 compensates recycling contractors based on levels of contamination found in the recycling carts: the more contamination, the higher the payment to the contractor,\u201d the city said in a press release. \u201cThose additional costs are paid for by single-family ratepayers.\u201d<\/p>\n

The city\u2019s top ten recycling contaminants include:<\/p>\n

\u2013 Plastic wrap, including case wrap and plastic film used for items like bread bags, paper towel wrapping, sandwich bags, and water bottle packs.
\n\u2013 Non-recyclable paper, which includes tissues, napkins, metallic gift wrap, and food-stained paper like greasy pizza boxes or to-go containers.
\n\u2013 Garbage and recyclables bound inside plastic bags.
\n\u2013 Plastic packaging, including bubble wrap, air pillows, blister packs, and plastic or padded shipping envelopes.
\n\u2013 Plastic to-go bags, such as standard grocery and retail sacks.
\n\u2013 Expanded polystyrene such as Styrofoam products, including packaging peanuts, blocks, cups, plates, and to-go containers.
\n\u2013 Textiles, including clothing, bedding, shoes, rugs, and fiber tote bags.
\n\u2013 Snack wrappers, chip bags and wrappers featuring a foil or reflective interior.
\n\u2013 To-go coffee cups, hot or cold paper cups, lids, and water cooler cups.
\n\u2013 Food scraps and household trash items like hoses, diapers, clothes hangers, and toys.<\/p>\n

A list of acceptable items is available at sanjoserecycles.org. It includes materials such as plastic egg cartons, plastic water bottles, rigid plastic cups, and food storage containers.<\/p>\n

Read more Knott\u2019s Berry Farm target of teen takeover, police warn<\/a><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

While city officials emphasized the need to keep improving recycling habits, they said recent progress has already led to significant taxpayer savings.<\/p>\n

According to a 2024 study, San Jose\u2019s recycling contamination rate fell to 41% from 57% in 2022. City officials said the drop reduces contractor compensation by $6.5 million each year from 2025 through 2027.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis decrease in contamination of our recycling showed that residents value and are engaged with recycling the correct way,\u201d said City Manager Jennifer Maguire. \u201cWe look forward to the next study scheduled for this fall, which will establish the updated contamination rate and contractor compensation for the next two fiscal years.\u201d<\/p>\n

City officials say they know that recycling guidelines can be confusing and credited the recent improvements to several outreach initiatives. Among them is the city\u2019s cart tagging program, which involves checking bins on collection days to provide residents with direct feedback on their sorting habits. San Jose has also placed English, Spanish and Vietnamese instructional graphics on more than 117,000 recycling cart lids and expanded outreach to multifamily properties.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

The city participates in a countywide hazardous waste program. The service allows residents to drop off items that cannot go into standard bins \u2013 such as batteries, paint, household cleaners, and propane tanks \u2013 at no additional cost. Drop-offs are accepted at two permanent facilities in San Jose and San Martin, as well as more than 500 neighborhood locations throughout the county.<\/p>\n

Read more An American politician is blocked by Israeli settlers in the West Bank<\/a><\/p>\n

For more information, visit sanjoserecycles.org.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Improperly sorted waste drives up operational costs, which are passed on to customers, the city says.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4295,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4296","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n10 things San Jose says residents should keep out of recycling bins - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"10 things San Jose says residents should keep out of recycling bins - Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Improperly sorted waste drives up operational costs, which are passed on to customers, the city says.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-11T20:07:16+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4296#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4296\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"headline\":\"10 things San Jose says residents should keep out of recycling bins\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-11T20:07:16+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4296\"},\"wordCount\":624,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4296#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/92e26bce94c569ac1e8af7f6d2cab91c.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4296#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4296\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4296\",\"name\":\"10 things San Jose says residents should keep out of recycling bins - Next City Digest\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4296#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4296#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/92e26bce94c569ac1e8af7f6d2cab91c.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-11T20:07:16+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4296#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4296\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4296#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/92e26bce94c569ac1e8af7f6d2cab91c.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/92e26bce94c569ac1e8af7f6d2cab91c.webp\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":653},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4296#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"10 things San Jose says residents should keep out of recycling bins\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Next City Digest\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"10 things San Jose says residents should keep out of recycling bins - Next City Digest","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"10 things San Jose says residents should keep out of recycling bins - Next City Digest","og_description":"Improperly sorted waste drives up operational costs, which are passed on to customers, the city says.","og_url":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296","og_site_name":"Next City Digest","article_published_time":"2026-07-11T20:07:16+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/#\/schema\/person\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b"},"headline":"10 things San Jose says residents should keep out of recycling bins","datePublished":"2026-07-11T20:07:16+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296"},"wordCount":624,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/92e26bce94c569ac1e8af7f6d2cab91c.webp","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296","url":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296","name":"10 things San Jose says residents should keep out of recycling bins - Next City Digest","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/92e26bce94c569ac1e8af7f6d2cab91c.webp","datePublished":"2026-07-11T20:07:16+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/#\/schema\/person\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/92e26bce94c569ac1e8af7f6d2cab91c.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/92e26bce94c569ac1e8af7f6d2cab91c.webp","width":1024,"height":653},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4296#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"10 things San Jose says residents should keep out of recycling bins"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/","name":"Next City Digest","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/#\/schema\/person\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/nextcitydigest.com"],"url":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4296","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4296"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4296\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4295"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4296"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4296"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4296"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}