MATERIALS
MANAGEMENT

businesses with bleu recycling cart
businesses with bleu recycling cart

We manage reliable, cost-effective collection of residential and commercial waste. We assist homeowners, renters, and businesses in making the most of a suite of modern waste services available to them. We also negotiate and manage the contract with our city’s franchised waste hauler, MarBorg. Our primary focus is on maximizing diversion of solid waste from landfill disposal.

The most sustainable option is to avoid generating waste altogether — if we don’t produce it, then we save the time, money, fuel, and other resources normally expended to deal with it.

Reducing landfill disposal is the City’s primary waste management goal. To achieve this goal, we are working to improve outreach and education about more sustainable purchasing decisions, and promoting reuse and reusable materials over single-use. To reduce plastic pollution in the environment, the City Council adopted ordinances banning the distribution of plastic grocery bags, polystyrene containers, and plastic straws, while encouraging reusable substitutes to these low quality single-use items.

Trash and Recycling Graphic
Trash and Recycling Graphic

We work with hundreds of businesses, property owners, and renters each year to capture recyclables and organic waste at the source, segregating these materials for collection, and diverting them from the landfill.

 

The City has worked with the County of Santa Barbara and other partner jurisdictions to construct the ReSource Center (formerly known as the Resource Recovery Project), a regional waste processing plant that diverts a minimum of 60% of our curbside trash from landfill disposal.

Trash and Recycling Graphic
Trash processing

Learn everything there is to know about proper waste disposal in the City of Santa Barbara. If you are looking for information on waste reduction tips, single-use plastic policies, billing information, and so much more then you have come to the right place.

Residential

Residents of Santa Barbara enjoy a great set of modern waste services provided by the City under contract with our local waste hauler, MarBorg Industries.

Residential Basics
Recycling Materials
Cook with compost bin

Business

We offer a suite of services to assist our business community ranging from waste audits, recycling presentations, personalized staff trainings, and service recommendations.

Business Customers

Collection Types

Do you know what’s recyclable? How about what items don’t belong in the greenwaste bin? To learn more about which items go in which bins we have put together many resources to help you properly dispose of your materials.

Collection Overview
Recycling Materials
Electronic waste

Drop-off Locations

Our local drop-off locations provide additional recycling services for special materials like CRV (CA Redemption Value) buy back, construction waste, electronics, mattresses, and other materials that are not accepted in your curbside pickup service.

Self-Haul Information

Special Waste

Some materials are hazardous to environmental and human health, others can cause serious damage to our local infrastructure. Find out how and where to dispose of things like hazardous waste, electronics, medical waste, and FOG (Fats, Oils, & Grease).

Special Waste Information
colored pills and capsule on white background
Santa Barbara sunset

Clean Community

This program joins residents, City staff, and community representatives with the #CleanSB mission to reduce waste (reduce, reuse, recycle and compost) and contribute to a clean community through graffiti and litter abatement.

Clean Community Programs
Spirit of Service Awards