Apartments, Condos, & Businesses: Landscaping Greenwaste
	> Reduce Waste by Grasscycling > Recycling with Landscapers ---Green Waste Recycling Bins ---· How Does it Work? ---· What Capcity Do I Need? ---· What Can be Placed in the Greenwaste Bins? ---· Where Should I Place the Greenwaste Bin? ---· How Much Does it Cost? ---Large Loads ---Get Free or Low Cost Mulch

Greenwaste recycling in a multi-unit complex or business is a lot easier than Mixed Recycling. It requires only the cooperation and participation of the landscaping contractor and workers. City recycling personnel can help with all aspects of your recycling program from set up to education and maintenance.

Reduce Waste by Grasscycling

One of the best things you can do for the lawn is to hire a gardener that uses a mulching mower. This mower has a special attachment that grinds up the lawn clippings and scatters them back on the lawn. The clippings degrade quickly and return nutrients to the soil. This is called “grass cycling” and does not leave thatch on the lawn. You should not see a difference between the mulching mower and the bag mower. Grass cycling also reduces the need for fertilizer by returning nutrients to the soil. Download the Landscaper's Guide to Grasscycling for details. Grasscycling reduces greenwaste and the costs associated with recycling or disposal.

Recycling with Landscapers

South Coast Recycling and Transfer Station
MarBorg Construction and Demolition Waste Recycling Facility

If you want to hire a landscaper that is trained in water saving, greenwaste recycling, earth-friendly gardening, hire a certified Green Gardener, listed at www.greengardener.org

Even if landscaping greenwaste is hauled offsite, multi-unit tenants may produce small amounts of plant material, cut flowers, and trimmings, especially if they have private planted areas. Commercial buildings that have business tenants such as florists will also produce extra greenwaste. Multi-unit complexes and businesses can get a 95 gallon cart or three cans of greenwaste for free.

Landscapers that Dispose of Greenwaste Onsite
If your landscaper is putting the greenwaste in the trash, it's costing you money! Landscapers will often do this because it saves them money and time. You can replace some of your trash capacity with low cost greenwaste bins and save money, or you can specify that it must be hauled offsite. See the next section on Greenwaste Recycling Bins for details.

Make green waste recycling a requirement of the maintenance contract and ensure that the contractor fully understands the system and communicates it to the workers. Download the Green Waste Recycling Guide that is in English and Spanish and give it to the contractor. The key to a successful green waste recycling program is to provide clear guildlines and signs on the bins in English, Spanish, or other languages spoken by the maintenance workers.

Green Waste Recycling Bins

How Does it Work?
Green waste recycling service is provided by the waste hauler. The City is divided into two zones serviced by Allied/BFI and MarBorg. Multi-unit complexes south or west of State Street are serviced by BFI.
MarBorg services complexes north and east of State. See the Trash and Recycling Service Providers Map to determine your hauler. Call your hauler to initiate or change trash, yard waste, or recycling services.

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Free Greenwaste

All multi-unit residences and businesses are entitled to up to 95 gallons of free yard waste per week with their garbage service. If the complex is large, and 95 gallons is not enough for green waste, managers can pay for additional yard waste capacity in cans, carts, dumpsters, or rolloff boxes.

Can or Cart Service (smaller complexes)
The waste hauler will provide either 32 gallon cans or 32, 64, or 95 gallon carts for green waste recycling. Cans take up more room, but will be serviced from their daily location. Carts can store more material in a smaller space, but must be located where the truck can drive up to them. They have wheels and are easy to move, even when full. Cans or carts are serviced once per week.

Dumpster Service (larger complexes)

The waste hauler can provide 1.5, 2,3, or 4 cubic yard dumpsters for green waste that can be emptied once per week, or every other week.

Rolloff Box Service (very large complexes)
If the planted area is extensive, and you can fill a 30 yard rolloff box in a couple of months, it will be your least expensive option. Pure greenwaste is very economical, but you can also use a rolloff box for "Bulky Recycling" in which you can mix greenwaste, furniture, pallets, wood, some construction debris, and large metal or plastic items that will be sorted and recycled. A 30 yard rolloff box is equivalent to 7 1/2 large dumpsters.

What Capacity Do I Need?

Smaller Complexes
Start with the free 95 gallons of green waste and see how it goes. If the free green waste container is overloaded, request an additional paid container, and add more until there is no overflow. For each green waste container that you add, remove a trash container of equal size.

Larger Complexes
Estimate or ask the landscaper to estimate how many cans or carts you need each week to contain the green waste. For very large complexes with dumpsters, you may be able to replace one of the trash dumpsters with a green waste dumpster.

What Can be Placed in the Green Waste Bin?
Download the Green Waste Recycling Guide in English or Spanish or follow these simple guidelines.

How Much Does it Cost?
The first 95 gallons are free! Download the Multi-Unit Rate Sheet or the Business Rate Sheet for prices and service types for more than 95 gallons.

Large Loads

South Coast Recycling and Transfer Station Self Haul Rate Sheet
MarBorg Self Haul Rate Sheet

Hiring Haulers
If you have a lot greenwaste and need to have it hauled away, you can choose any of the following haulers regardless of who hauls your regular trash as long as it is for a one time project and not a regular service. Call to compare prices. Greenwaste recycling is much cheaper than trash disposal, but the load much be greenwaste only, with no trash or other contaminants.

Trash Haulers
Businesses can get paid pickups by calling either MarBorg or BFI. You can choose either hauler no matter where you live. They have different charges conditions, so call for pricing and terms.

1-800-GOT-JUNK
This general waste hauler will pick up greenwaste, and any other waste you have for a fee. They recycle all greenwaste that is free of trash. Book online at www.1800gotjunk.com to save $10, or call 1-800-468-5865.

Small Local Haulers
There are many small operators with pickup trucks that will haul furniture, greenwaste, and other waste to the transfer station or MarBorg. Make sure that they will recycle your greenwaste, it is also far less expensive than bringing it in as trash. Check out the "Services" classified advertising section of local papers (see our Classified Ads page for the online version), or try the online classifieds at Craigslist

Your greenwaste is ground into mulch that can be placed under bushes, shrubbery, and larger plants. Bare soil dries out quickly and is an invitation to weeds. Use mulch to return fertility to the soil, block sunlight from the weed seeds, and keep the soil moist. You can get free mulch from the County or MarBorg. Download the County Mulch handout in both English and Spanish, or call MarBorg at 963-1852.