Correct Cart Placement

Below is some information on how to properly set out your carts. Please set them out as described:

• Place out all carts by 6:00 AM on your collection day

• Place the cart on the street edge, in the gutter, or on the curb.

• Allow 18 inches on all sides of each cart.

• Do not place under trees or street signs.

• Do not place carts where they are obstructed by vehicles.

• Please place carts with the lids opening towards the street.

• Please do not tie the lids shut.

How to use the
garbage cart
- weekly service

Please put these items in the brown garbage cart:
Okay for garbage
6-pack rings (please cut)
Auto Glass
Binders (plastic) – Please note these can be given to thrift stores for reuse.
Carbon paper
Cat or dog waste and litter (bagged)
Cigarette Butts
Cotton Balls
Computer Disks
Contaminated Paper, such as paper plates
Deodorant Casing
Diapers
Drinking glasses
Extension Cords
Feminine Products
Foam (all types)
Fireplace Ash (Bagged)
Hangers (dry cleaners will take back hangers)
Hoses
Ice cream wrappers
Laminated items
Leather
Light bulbs (no fluorescent) – see Hazardous Waste page for disposal options
Metallic wrapping paper
Mirrors
Rope
Packing peanuts (bagged or take to a shipping store for reuse)
Paper clips
Photographs
Plastic plants

Plastic Bags/Film Plastic
Q-tips
Records, tapes, CD's
Rubber bands
Rubber/neoprene
Rugs/mats
Shoes (unwanted or can’t be donated)
Shower curtains, liners
Sponges
Straws, Stir sticks (plastic)
Stuffed animals, toys
Styrofoam
Tape
Tempered Glass (Corning, Pyrex)
Textiles (unwanted or can’t be donated)
Toothpaste tubes
Transparencies, microfilm, negatives (acetate)
Utensils (plastic)
Vacuum cleaner bags & dust (Must be bagged)
Window Glass

How to use the green organics cart
- weekly service

Please put these items in the green yard waste cart:
Okay for yard waste recycling
**New for 2022 Food Scraps allowed in the yard waste. (more info) Food Scrap Brochure English - Spanish
brush
flower cuttings
flowers
garden trimmings
grass trimmings
house plants
lawn clippings
leaves
plant and shrub trimmings
prunings
tree limbs up to 3 inches in diameter 
should be cut to 3-foot lengths
wood chips
DO NOT INCLUDE:
plastic bags or packaging
Glass
Coffee Pods
rocks and concrete
sod and dirt
building materials
large tree trunks and stumps greater than 3 inches in 
diameter or more than 3 feet in length
palm fronds
cactus
ice plants
cat and dog waste or litter lumber/treated wood
liquids or oils
raw meats

EXTRA YARD WASTE - Extra yard waste is not collected in any container other that a Monterey City Disposal Service supplied yard waste cart. Additional yard waste carts can be obtained from Monterey City Disposal Service for an additional $9.00 monthly charge. We cannot pick up yard waste in bags as bags are considered a contaminant. Contaminated yard waste will be picked up as trash and you will be billed $17.32, or it will be left on the curb.

How to use the recycling cart
- weekly service

Please put these items in the blue recycling cart:
Please do not bag items (Except Shredded Paper)                       
Books
Boxes, Packages
Carbonless Paper
Cardboard
Catalogs
Cereal boxes
Colored/Construction paper
Computer paper
Copy paper
Coupons
Detergent boxes
Egg cartons (paper only, no Styrofoam)
Envelopes
Frozen food boxes
Gift wrap (non-metallic)
Gift wrap Tissue Paper (non-metallic)
Junk mail
Magazines
Manila folders
Newspapers and inserts
Office Paper
Paper (adhesive/post its)
Paper bags
Paper packaging
Shredded paper (In a clear plastic bag only)
Telephone Books
Glass Containers
Rinsed; all colors (lids, caps OK)
Bottles/Beverage containers
Jars
Wine Bottles
Plastic  Beverage Containers only; empty; rinsed with arrows numbered 1 ,2,4,5, or 7. (lids, caps OK, but removed)
Bleach bottles
Buckets
Detergent bottles
Household cleaning containers
Milk jugs
Salad dressing bottles (empty & clean)
Shampoo/Conditioner bottles
Water jugs
Aerosol cans (empty)
Aluminum cans
Aluminum foil (clean)
Aluminum pie plates (clean)
Beverage cans
Food cans (clean)
Pet food cans
Steel cans
Tin cans

*PLEASE NOTE: Not all items with the "recycling symbol" are acceptable. Only materials that are marketable are currently recyclable.  Please call and ask if you have questions about materials not listed. 

DO NOT RECYCLE: Ceramics, plastic bags or film plastic, window glass, plastic bags, paper towels, tissue, drinking glasses, aseptic cartons, juice boxes, coffee pods, milk cartons, lightbulbs, food, garbage and organic or green waste materials, Styrofoam or polystyrene packing peanuts, metal pipe or plumbing fixtures or appliances, insulation, or hazardous waste.  

Note: The list above are common recycling contaminants. It is not practical to provide a list of every possible material that we are unable to divert for recycling.

Please call and ask if you have questions about materials not listed. 

Automated collection

Like most cities, Monterey has transitioned to automated residential collection vehicles.  There are several advantages to an automated collection vehicle. One of the most significant advantages is that it greatly reduces the physical impact of refuse and recycling collection on the collection personnel, allowing our employees to work long past what was typical for those working in manual collection vehicles. Another advantage is that these trucks are designed so that they no longer have to use high engine revolutions to service the accounts, which equates to less noise, less emissions, and lower fuel consumption. Currently, three of these automated collection vehicles are in use in the City of Monterey. For these automated collection vehicles to operate most efficiently, the carts must be properly placed at the curb or street edge, as described above.