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Did you know shredded paper, plastic lids, plastic bags, and other stretchy plastics are NOT allowed in your home recycling bin? But now, you can drop them off for recycling at six new locations around Portland.
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Portlanders now have more places to recycle items that don't belong in home recycling bins. New RecycleOn Centers offer free drop-off recycling at locations across Portland. These locations are funded through Oregon's Recycling Modernization Act.
New RecycleOn Centers accept items that can't go in your bin
You can drop off these items for free at one of six new RecycleOn Centers in Portland:
Shredded paper
Put shredded paper in a paper bag, then roll or staple the top shut before dropping it off.
In case you missed it, shredded paper is no longer allowed in your recycling bin in Oregon.
Plastic bags and stretchy plastics
Plastic bags and stretchy plastics include grocery bags, produce bags, bread bags, bubble wrap, air pillows, and the stretchy plastic wrapped around toilet paper or paper towel packs.
Plastic lids and caps
Plastic lids and caps include snap-on lids from yogurt, salsa, and other containers, as well as plastic screwcaps.*
*Thanks to a recent change in recycling rules, you can now recycle plastic screwcaps in your regular recycling bin if they're screwed onto plastic bottles or containers. But snap-on lids, loose lids, and caps still aren't allowed, so they must be dropped off for recycling.
Hard plastic multipack handles
Hard plastic handles are most commonly seen on 6-packs and 4-packs of beverage cans. They snap onto the top of the cans and hold them together. You might also see them holding two-packs or multipacks of water, or large containers of salsa, sauce, etc., purchased from club stores. Stretchy 6-pack rings are not accepted.
Where to find RecycleOn Centers
You can find RecycleOn collection containers at the following local organizations. Before you go, check the RecycleOn Center website for current hours.
- 2711 SE Milwaukie Ave, Portland, OR 97202
- Open Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
- 34 NW Broadway, Portland, OR 97209
- Open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Green Century Electronics Recycling
- 3251 NW 29th Ave., Portland, OR 97210
- Open Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. and Saturday, 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
- 5541 SW Beaverton Hillsdale Hwy, Portland, OR 97221
- Open Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.
- 6929 NE Halsey St., Portland, OR 97213
- Open Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, 9 a.m - 4 p.m.
- 10445 SE Cherry Blossom Dr., Portland, OR 97216
- Open Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Open Tuesday 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.
See a map of all RecycleOn Centers*
*Note: The RecycleOn Centers website is a statewide resource. It lists some items—like plastic buckets and pails, aluminum foil and trays, and glass—that can go in Portland recycling bins as long as you follow these guidelines: Glass should always go in your glass‑only bin, and aluminum foil and trays should be balled up to at least the size of a baseball before placing them in your blue bin.
If you have other items to recycle or donate, you can also use Metro's Find A Recycler search tool or talk with a Metro recycling specialist Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Community members with disabilities who are unable to transport these items to a RecycleOn Center can request a free pickup using this form.
Businesses with large volumes of materials can contact RecycleOn Oregon staff to arrange for alternative collections.
Why some things can't go in your recycling bin
Some materials are difficult for regular recycling facilities to sort. For example, plastic bags can jam recycling facility machines, shredded paper is too small for machines to sort, and lids and package handles are flat like paper and can confuse sorting equipment.
Learn what NOT to recycle and why
More recycling options, thanks to Oregon's Recycling Modernization Act
These new drop-off recycling centers exist because of Oregon's Recycling Modernization Act. This law makes companies that sell packaging and paper products help pay for improvements to Oregon's recycling system.
As part of this work, the nonprofit Circular Action Alliance created RecycleOn Centers so people have easy places to drop off items that can't go in home or workplace recycling bins.