RIVERSIDE

FAQ

Welcome Letter

Customer Care Center

(888) 336-6100

Residential Waste Collection

WELCOME TO

Riverside

Your Partner to Achieving a Zero Waste Future

Athens Services is a local, family-owned waste collection and recycling company that has been a fixture in the greater Los Angeles community for the past 65 years. We provide innovative, consistent, and quality environmental services to our more than 250,000 customers in the 50+ communities we serve. Through reuse, recycling, and composting, Athens diverts valuable resources from landfills. Through reuse, recycling, and composting, Athens diverts valuable resources from landfills.

COLLECTION TIME

Please place your containers at the curb by 5:30 a.m. on your collection day. Athens will service containers in single-family residential neighborhoods one-time (1) per week between 5:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m., Monday – Friday. Set containers with wheels against the curb at least 1 foot from each other and any other obstruction. All trash must be inside of the containers and the lids closed.

HOURS OF OPERATION

For all service requests and inquiries, call the Athens Customer Care Center at (888) 336-6100

RESOURCES FOR

RIVERSIDE RESIDENTS

Information, standards, and special instructions!

Outreach & Education Tools

HOLIDAY SCHEDULE

Holidays create a one-day delay in collection service. Athens Services observes the following holidays:

If a holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday, waste collection services will not be delayed.

WHAT GOES IN MY CONTAINER?

Correctly reduce, reuse, recycle, compost, or dispose of unwanted items; check out Athens’ interactive “What Goes Where Guide.’’

Visit Athens’ Outreach Materials & Resources page for downloadable signage, Recycling Cheat Sheet, and additional resources.

Recyclables are brought to the Agua Mansa Materials Recovery Facility.

Visit the City of Riverside’s Recycling Page at RiversideCA.gov/PublicWorks/Trash-Recycling for additional resources.

RECYCLING

If empty of liquid and food, the following is acceptable in your blue recycling container.
Plastic: milk/soy cartons (paper and aseptic), milk jugs, plastic bags (bundled), plastics #1 – 7, Styrofoam

Paper: (clean, dry, and no metal): magazines, mail, office paper, newspaper, paper bags, & telephone books

Cardboard: broken down cardboard

Glass: bottles & jars only

Metals: aluminum cans, foil, & trays, scrap metal, steel cans & tin cans

DO NOT USE FOR: clothing, plastic childrens’ toys/pools, soiled paper or cardboard

ORGANICS

bagged food waste, branches; flowers; grass clippings; hedge trimmings; leaves; & weeds

LANDFILL

Animal waste, cactus, palm fronds, yucca, household waste, soiled products, trash, other waste

State law prohibits the disposal of hazardous material into your containers. For proper disposal options, click here. We also ask that you do not place bulky items, construction debris, electronic waste, or automotive parts in your containers. For bulky items disposal options, click here.

The following is a list of items you should not place in your container:

Electronics can include those devices that utilize electrical wiring, plug into an electric outlet, or take a battery or light bulb. Examples include, but are not limited to, computers and accessories, circuit boards, extension cords, flashlights, microwaves, phones, stereos, and televisions.

Waste material generated during the construction, renovation, or demolition of a location cannot be placed in a standard cart or bin. Examples of C&D materials include, but are not limited to, asphalt, bricks, carpet, concrete, dirt, doors, drywall, earth, glass, construction, and cabinet lumber, masonry materials, pallets, pipes, plastics, plumbing fixtures, rocks, salvaged building components, scrap metal, roof shingles, tile, and windows.

HAZARDOUS WASTE

E-waste, hazardous waste, and u-waste is NOT accepted in any Athens container and must be disposed of through alternative collection methods, as described here. It is illegal to dispose of these items into a waste container, down the drain, or by abandonment.

Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) is any product labeled toxic, poisonous, corrosive, flammable, combustible, or irritant. Examples include, but are not limited to, antifreeze, automotive fluids, cleaning products, compressed gas cylinders (full or empty), fertilizers, herbicides, paint, pesticides, pool chemicals, solvents, and more.

DISPOSAL OPTIONS

Riverside County operates several free HHW facilities for residents of Riverside County only. For more information, visit RCWaste.org/HHW.

For collection of larger quantities of hazardous waste, click here to contact Athens for an estimate.

HOW TO HANDLE BATTERIES

It is illegal to place batteries in your waste bins. Batteries should be disposed of as hazardous waste. They can spark fires or create an unsafe environment for waste workers. If properly collected, battery recyclers can repurpose the metal. Use these storage tips to avoid short-circuiting and fires:

Place a piece of non-conductive tape or duct tape on the ends, and do not cover the brand name or chemistry of the battery
Store batteries in a container that does not conduct electricity (like plastic, cardboard, or glass)

BULKY ITEMS

Athens Services encourages the reuse and donation of bulky items whenever possible.

If this is not an option, Athens will, upon request only, remove bulky items, including major appliances and furniture. Acceptable bulky items include, but are not limited to, dryers, mattresses, refrigerators, rugs, tree trunks, washing machines, and water heaters.

Automobile parts, construction debris, hazardous waste, and heavy items (such as pool tables and pianos) are NOT allowed as part of a bulky item pickup nor should they be placed in any Athens container. Doing so may cause an interruption in your service.

To schedule a collection, please submit a Bulky Item Pickup Request or call the Athens Customer Care Center at (888) 314-0061.

HOLIDAY TREE RECYCLING

Athens Services collects and composts real holiday trees and foliage into nutrient-rich soil amendment that can be used in agriculture, public parks, and landscaping.

DISPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS (REAL TREES)

Remove all stands, lights, ornaments, tree skirts, and tinsel
If your tree is more than six feet in length, please cut it in half
Place your tree curbside for collection – trees are collected over a three (3) week period on regular collection days from December 26th through January 16th
If a resident misses the designated collection period, they can request a bulky item collection or cut up the tree

Artificial trees, flocked trees, and trees coated with fire retardant are NOT recyclable or compostable; they will be treated as trash. If the artificial tree is still usable, please consider donating it. Broken or no longer usable artificial trees should be disposed of as part of a bulky item collection.