Holiday Trash Tips

During the holiday season, even our garbage becomes more colorful and fragrant and bountiful with wrapping paper, boxes and Christmas Trees. Here are a few tips for taking care of your garbage through the holidays and purchasing gift items that will help reduce waste:

• Remember -- No refuse and recycling collection on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. In observance of the Christmas and New Year's holidays, there will be no refuse or recycling collection on Monday, December 26, 2016 or Monday, January 2, 2017. When your refuse day falls on these observed holidays, the missed collection will be made up on the following 1-2 days.

The City provides scheduled collection service on all holidays except Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. For 2016-17, the City is observing these holidays on Monday, December 26, 2016 and Monday, Januray 2, 2017. For those communities that are in the 3-cart curbside recycling program (with once per week refuse and once per week recycling pickup), when your refuse day falls on these observed holidays (Monday, December 26, 2016 and Monday, January 2, 2017), the missed collection will be made up on the following 1-2 days. Please leave the gray cart at the curb until it is serviced. Recycling days that fall on these observed holidays will not be made up. Please hold mixed recyclables and green waste for the next scheduled pickup. Bulky collection will continue on the days following the holiday. Since bulky pickup is conducted over a 3-4 day period in each sector, the collection crews will make up the holiday on the other days.

If you are in a manual collection area with twice per week refuse only pick-up, and your pickup day falls on one of these holidays, please hold your items for the next scheduled collection day.

• Keep your neighborhood glittering with holiday decorations, not trash.

Put your refuse, mixed recvclables, green waste, and bulky items out at the curb only on collection days (or the evening before). It’s not nice to just leave your garbage or the containers out at the curb all the time, and it’s a violation of City ordinance.

• Recycle your Christmas trees.

Remove all ornaments and tinsel (and no flocked trees). Place them at the curb (in your green cart) for pickup on your regular every-other-week green waste collection day; drop them off at any of the City’s Refuse and Recycling Convenience Centers seven days a week or at the composting facilities.

• For households in the cart pickup system, please note that the tree has to fit inside the cart. Cut the tree into lengths up to three feet and trim branches to ensure that it will fall freely from the cart during collection. If cutting the tree is a bother, you can drop it off whole at the nearest City Convenience Center.
• For households on a manual collection route, cut the tree into lengths up to three feet and place at curb on your refuse day. If cutting the tree is a bother, you can drop it off whole at the nearest City Convenience Center.
• Click here for collection schedules.
• Click here for list of City Convenience Centers.

Please be aware that the State has discontinued the special treecycling sites at parks and other locations around the island. Do not bring your trees to these sites. Use curbside collection or look for the list of City drop-off sites. Condos and commercial buildings can deliver large loads of trees directly to composting facilities – there will be no tip fee charge over the holidays for Christmas trees, courtesy of the City. Contact the City's Recycling Office at 768-3200 to arrange a delivery.

• Recycle the beverage containers from all the parties, and the big corrugated cardboard boxes from those super toys and gifts.

Use your blue cart to recycle. For households without curbside recycling, HI-5 Plus Drop-Off Recycling Centers accept deposit beverage containers and many of the same materials that go into the blue cart.

• Beware -- Fireworks and garbage are a dangerous mix.

If you have fireworks activity in your neighborhood, please be sure that your refuse and recycling carts are closed and placed out of the way. You could be held responsible for damage to your refuse or recycling carts if you don’t take proper precautions to protect them.

• Green gifts and wrapping ideas are everywhere these days. Be watchful as you shop and Google green gifts online.

In 2015, the Department of Environmental Services' Collection System Maintenance division created a "Minions at Work" themed Christmas tree as their entry into the Honolulu City Lights celebration. The different Minions at work represent the Department's different divisions that help keep our island clean and beautiful. Minion ornaments and other decorations are made from reused or recycled items, showcasing the Department's commitment to sustainability and to fostering a clean environment.