Residential Recycling
A Two Stream System
The residential recycling program in Essex Windsor is TWO stream – the Blue Box for container materials and the Red Box for paper materials. Every recycling truck has TWO compartments (one for containers and one for paper). The materials are delivered to TWO different facilities (one building for containers and another building for paper).
Recycling Guide: 2019 Recycling Guide
Note / Recycling Carts: The recycling program also allows residents to use ‘residential recycling carts’. Residential Recycling Carts are to be designated for one material ONLY (either containers OR paper) – containers and paper cannot be mixed together in the cart! Carts need to be clearly labelled, in order for the driver to dump the contents in the correct compartment on the truck. Please visit our ‘Environmental Products’ page under ‘Education / Resources’ for more information about the residential recycling cart.
Recycling Guidelines (Blue Box – Containers)







Recycling Guidelines (Red Box – Paper Products)




Contamination: If you put the wrong material in the wrong box then there is a high likelihood that the material WILL NOT be recycled because it will be delivered to the wrong facility. If you have too much paper or containers one week, don’t put it in the wrong box but instead purchase another box at Home Hardware or our Truckload Sale or use another container of a similar size or a cardboard box for the extra materials.
General Recycling Information
- Collection Time: Have your recycle boxes out the NIGHT BEFORE, or prior to 6:00 a.m. on your scheduled recycling collection day.
- NO Plastic Bags. Do NOT place your recycling in plastic bags. Plastic bags are not accepted in our program.
- Windy Days: Please stack your Blue Box on top of your Red Box. This will help secure the paper products so they don’t blow out of the box.
- Larger Blue Boxes: Larger BLUE Boxes are available to purchase at Home Hardware Stores. New larger boxes can ONLY be used for containers.
Revenue From Recycling
The Authority generates revenue through the sale of recyclable materials. The more materials recycled – the more revenue there is to offset the waste management system costs. If residents throw recyclable materials in the garbage, we lose the revenue generated from the sale of the materials. Therefore, we encourage all residents to recycle everything that they can. Recyclable materials are a resource that should not be squandered.