Yard Waste
Recycling and disposal in Stark, Tuscarawas and Wayne Counties
Yard waste includes leaves, branches, grass clippings, and shrubs without the soil. District residents can decrease their waste stream by leaving the grass clippings on the lawn each time you mow—doing so not only maintains a healthy lawn but decreases the cost to haul and compost the material.
*Yard waste collection locations may close or have reduced hours during the winter season. Please check with your local collection site before dropping off your yard waste materials.*
Compost Yard Waste
Residents may compost their yard waste along with their food waste. Using compost in your soil or mulch provides valuable nutrients for plant growth, reduces moisture/nutrient loss from the soil surface, helps control weeds, reduces soil erosion on slopes, helps maintain soil temperatures, loosens/aerates heavy clay soils, and attracts earthworms and other microbes that benefit gardens and flower beds. See Food Waste to learn more about composting.
Pick-Up and Drop-Off Options
Lastly, check to see if your community has a curbside leaf, branch or Christmas tree collection program, or visit a local yard waste drop-off site or composting facility.
Where to Drop Off Yard Waste for Composting
Types of Yard Waste Accepted
This list is not comprehensive. You may call the facilities to confirm whether or not they accept the items you need to recycle.
Link coming soon!
Types of Yard Waste NOT Accepted
- Treated wood: Resistance to rot and decay, which is incompatible with composting
- Railroad ties: Treated with creosote, a preservative that stops wood from decaying
- Carcasses and food waste: Materials collected at the yard waste drop-offs are sent to registered composting facilities that are only authorized to accept yard waste. There are composting facilities in Ohio that do accept carcasses and food waste, but they are not affiliated with the District’s yard waste program.
- Wooden furniture: Often treated with preservatives or varnish/paint, which chemically contaminates composting and does not break down
- Non-organic materials such as plastic bags, mattresses, drywall and other demolition material: Materials do not naturally decompose. Materials that do decompose may change the pH of the compost pile and slow down the rate of natural decay.