Non-Traditional Recycling

The City of Cleveland not only recycles plastic, metal, glass and paper products, but has an extensive program for non-traditional materials, such as computers, phonebooks, tires and hazardous waste products. For more information on these specific initiatives, please select the links above.

Don't Let Trash Get You Down in the Dumps

Imagine sitting on your porch on a hot summer night. The sky is clear, the familiar background buzz of the city echoes gently in your ear. You mutter quietly to yourself, "life is good" until a slight wind blows past as it does every night at about dusk. The wind carries with it an intolerably strong smell of garbage. You're not sure what it is that could produce such an odor but you're sure it's coming from the alley around the corner. After all people have been dumping there for years. Sure the skunks, raccoons, and smell used to bother you, but by now the neighborhood is used to the dump and the problems it creates.

Unfortunately this has become too often the case in some of Cleveland's residential and industrial areas. Illegal dumps are generally found in wooded urban areas, on empty lots, in abandoned buildings and under bridges. Aside from creating unsightly landscapes they pose extreme health hazards to both neighborhood residents and our local ecosystem. Dumpers generally operate at night making them hard to identify and catch through conventional policing. That's why the City of Cleveland is asking its neighborhoods to step up and start reporting illegal dumpers. If you suspect someone is illegally dumping waste in your neighborhood, call the City hotline at (216) 664-3867. If your tip leads to a conviction you may receive a reward of up to one half of the court imposed fine.

City of Cleveland Illegal Dumping Laws