Recycling

Reduce, reuse and recycle, the three R's for waste management, are effective measures that serve as alternatives to disposing waste in landfills.

Florida's Solid Waste Management Act, passed in 1988, requires that each county reduce its solid waste disposal by 30 percent through waste reduction and recycling programs. Volusia County is meeting this goal. 

Why recycle?

Recycling is good for the environment for a number of reasons, including reducing landfill waste and pollution to recycling and reusing items to conserve resources. By recycling and reusing, the amount of non-biodegradable materials being manufactured is  reduced as recycled materials are processed and made into new products. But don't forget how important it is to complete the recycling circle by purchasing goods produced with recycled content.

By reducing, reusing and recycling you can help to protect our water, air, land, energy and cultural resources.

Who receives service from Volusia County?

• Single-family dwellings on less than 10 acres
• Multi-family dwellings up to four units
• Unincorporated Volusia County

Residents should place their recycling bins with recycling materials at the curb
by 6 a.m. for pick-up on their scheduled recycling day.

Commercial recycling brochure
Recycle centers brochure
Recycling for businesses flyer
Household hazardous waste brochure

Dual-sort recycling system

Volusia County uses a dual-sort system for its recyclables. The dual-sort system uses two bins – one for paper materials and one for plastic, steel, glass and aluminum containers. Learn more about the two bin system by reading the Recycling two bin system brochure.

What can you recycle?

• Newspapers and other fiber materials
  Fiber items are to be placed in your fiber materials bin.  When recycling cardboard boxes please make sure they are broken down and flat. Larger cardboard items must be flattened and cut or folded into pieces no larger than 2 feet by 2 feet Please stack these larger items between or under bins. There is no need to bundle or tie flattened cardboard boxes together. Please secure loose paper items in the bin so they will not blow out.
• Paper materials
  • Newspaper inserts including glossy pages
  • Mixed office paper
  • Junk mail 
  • Magazines
  • Corrugated cardboard boxes (no larger than 2 feet by 2 feet)
  • Cereal boxes (no liners) and snack boxes
  • Beverage cartons
  • Gift boxes
• Glass bottles
  All colors of glass (green, amber and clear) may be placed in your bin. Please remove lids and dispose of them in your regular garbage.
• Aluminum/steel cans
  Recycle all aluminum and metal beverage and food cans. Aerosol cans also may be recycled, but be sure they are empty. Remove plastic tips and tops before recycling.
• Plastic 
  Plastic containers coded 1 & 2 are accepted in your curbside recycling. Please remove caps and lids before recycling. Some plastic bottles that can be recycled include soda, juice, milk, medicine bottles, soap, bleach, shampoo, hair spray, alcohol and peroxide.

Please rinse!

Rinsing cans and jars helps reduce odor and discourages pests, such as ants, from invading your bin.

Need another recycling bin?

Additional bins will be distributed upon resident request. Residents who occasionally have too many recyclable items for their container(s) are asked to put extra items in a brown paper bag (NO PLASTIC BAGS PLEASE) placed on top of the recycling bin, or beside the bin if there is no room on top. Residents who require a replacement bin should call the Solid Waste and Recycling Division.

Stuff left in your bin?

Non-recyclable materials that have been placed in the recycling bin by mistake will not be collected. These items will be left inside the bin. If you have questions regarding these materials, please contact Volusia County's Solid Waste Division at 386-257-6021 in Daytona Beach, 386-943-7889 in West Volusia, 386-423-3862 in New Smyrna Beach, and 386-574-0598 in Osteen.

Put your old stuff to good use -- reuse!
Sometimes, in our haste to dispose of unwanted items such as books, furniture, appliances or electronic equipment, we forget that these items can be reused.

Thrift shops
Many charitable organizations and nonprofit groups operate thrift shops that accept these materials. Please look in your telephone book yellow pages under "Thrift Shops."  An additional advantage - in many cases your donations are tax deductible - just remember to get a receipt!

Consignment shops
Consignment shops also are a good way to reuse these items and to recover some of your original investment. These shops have become very popular for their slightly used goods. Please look in your phone book listing under "Consignment."

Junk your junk mail

Did you know?

OK, now that you’ve decided to reduce the volume of junk mail you receive, how do you go about it? Start by registering with the Mail Preference Service of the Direct Marketing Association (DMA). It won’t guarantee you a life free of junk mail, but it can help. Just remember to register your full name and any variations of it (for example, James T. Roll, Jim Roll, J. T. Roll, etc.). DMA will list you in its database in the “Do Not Mail” category. Direct marketers are not required to check the database, but most companies that send large volumes of bulk mail do use the DMA service. They realize there is no percentage in routinely sending mail to people who don’t want it and have taken action to prevent it.

Get off the lists
You can also go to OptOutPreScreen.com, which can enable you to remove your name from lists that mortgage, credit card and insurance companies use to mail you offers and solicitations. It’s a centralized website run by the four major credit bureaus in the United States: Equifax, Experian, Innovis and TransUnion.

Most businesses check with one or more of these companies before accepting your credit card or granting you credit for a long-term purchase. They also are a huge source of names and addresses for credit card, mortgage and insurance companies that routinely send junk mail to attract new customers and solicit new business. But there’s a way to fight back. The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act requires credit bureaus to delete your name from their rented lists if you make the request.

Contact companies that send you mail
If you are serious about ridding your life of as much junk mail as possible, then simply registering with these services may not leave enough space in your mailbox. You also should ask all of the companies you patronize to place your name on their “do not promote” or “in-house suppress” lists.

If you do business with a company by mail, it should be on your contact list. This includes magazine publishers, any companies that send you catalogs, credit card companies, etc. It’s best to make this request the first time you do business with a company, because it will prevent the company from selling your name to other organizations, but you can make the request at any time.

Keep track of your name
As an extra precaution, some organizations recommend that you track where companies are getting your name by using a slightly different name whenever you subscribe to a magazine or begin a new mail relationship with a company. One strategy is to give yourself fictional middle initials that match the name of the company. If your name is Jennifer Jones and you subscribe to Vanity Fair, simply give your name as Jennifer V.F. Jones, and ask the magazine not to rent your name. If you receive a piece of junk mail addressed to Jennifer V.F. Jones, you’ll know where the company got your name.

Do yourself and the environment a favor. Keep the junk mail out of your mailbox and out of the landfill!

Also...if you are receiving unwanted newspapers (discount classified papers, newspaper free sections) and do not want them delivered to your home, you may call the paper and request that it stop.

Education programs
Volusia County's Solid Waste Division offers a variety of information on subjects covered in this section. Please call 386-943-7889 to schedule a free tour of the Tomoka Landfill or West Volusia Transfer Station or to arrange for a presentation to your school or civic group.

Free booklets and pamphlets also are available. Call 386-943-7889 for a booklet on Recycling Drop-Off Sites, Recycling Buy-back Centers or the Dual-sort Recycling System.