Trash, Recycling and Compost

Trash/Recycling Contractor:  Republic (Formerly JRM)

• Please have trash and recycling curbside by 7 a.m.
• Missed trash/recycle collection call/schedule bulk item pick up: 800-323-4285  or 978-536-2500 (Republic) 

Trash Collection Schedule

2023 Collection Calendar

Manchester has a "pay as you throw" trash program. All trash must be placed in orange bags with the Manchester Seal that can only be purchased at Crosby's, Richdale, Allen's Pharmacy, Manchester Hardware and Magnolia Variety. Trash, recycling and compost gets collected on Monday and Tuesday mornings by JRM and Black Earth Compost. Your collection day depends on which street you live on in Town. Contact Ruth Fitzgerald fitzgeraldr@manchester.ma.us in the DPW office if you are new to Town and need help determining your trash day. 

Orange bags must be placed at the curb by 7 AM on the collection day. ONLY place MBTS orange bags curbside on the morning of your collection; bags can be placed in a barrel with a lid to prevent animals from tearing open the bags. MBTS orange bags may not exceed 50 pounds in weight.  Trash not in an orange bag with a town seal printed on them will not be collected, resident will be responsible for its removal.

Residents may also take trash in MBTS orange bags to the transfer station on Saturdays from 10 AM to 3 PM. 

Banned Items

Per the Department of Environmental Protection's Municipal Solid Waste regulations, certain items cannot be put in orange bags picked up curbside or dropped at the Transfer Station. 
 
As noted below, some items can be dropped off separately at the Transfer Station for recycling and proper disposal; please see the transfer station attendant on arrival. Fees may apply and stickers may be required; please view COMPREHENSIVE DISPOSAL LIST  in advance.

The following list of items cannot be put in orange trash bags or recycling bins:

• Oil-Based Paint
• Pesticides
• Fertilizers
• Harsh Cleaners
• Lithium, Nickel Cadmium and Button Batteries (bring to DPW Office at Town Hall)
• Fluorescent Bulbs (designated container at transfer station)
• Petroleum Products
• Mercury-Based Products (contact Board of Health at 978-526-7385)
• Some Inorganic Materials
• Roofing and Asbestos
• Organic and Bio Hazard Material
• Radioactive Material
• Tires (Requires private disposal - call 978-526-1242 for local options)
• Auto Batteries (Transfer Station with $10 sticker - see attendant)

For more information on banned waste, curbside trash, kitchen composting or recycling, please call 978-526-1242.

Bulk Item Pickup

All wooden/fabric large items are curbside collections only and need to be scheduled directly with Republic and cannot go to the transfer station.  Please call Republic at 1-800-323-4285 to schedule a pick up of these items. More than one item allowed. The fee is $25.00 per item. 

Examples of bulk items include carpet/carpet padding, rigid plastics, chairs, couches and other wooden furniture. 

Does your bulk item still have some life left to it? There are a few options available locally that may be able to re-use your bulk item! Contact Beverly Bootstraps at 978-921-4710 or Second Glance in Gloucester 978-283-4298 for more information. CLICK HERE: Comprehensive Disposal List 2022

Mattress Disposal

Mattress Ban:  New 2022 state rules require mattresses and textiles be kept out of the trash so they can be recycled or donated for reuse. Landfills, transfer stations, and waste-to-energy facilities across the Commonwealth no longer accept these items for disposal. Mattresses must be recycled or reused, and textiles must be donated for reuse or other secondary uses.  

Single Stream Recycling

There is no limit to how many recyclable items you can set out curbside EVERY week (please note the driver must be able to lift your container of items - spread it out over several containers if it weighs more than 30lbs), or drop off at the transfer station for FREE. A resident vehicle sticker is mandatory to access the transfer station.

Place all recyclables in your own barrel or bin of any size and label it with a recycle sticker (stickers are free and may be picked up at the DPW office). Large totes with lids are acceptable. 

Used clothing, bedding, towels, shoes and belts may be collected curbside by Black Earth if placed in white drawstring trash bags. Textiles can also be dropped at bins located at the high school and Transfer Station. View flyer for more details. 

Books can be brought to bins located at the High School and Transfer Station. 

Items that can't be recycled and must go in orange bags as trash:

• Styrofoam
• Plastic bags, plastic wrap, plastic 6-pack holders
• Regular light bulbs and regular batteries 
• Shredded paper
• Tanglers: cords, wires, cables, straws
• Any to-go food containers, including clamshell, eg salad/food containers from restaurants, supermarkets.
• Anything smaller than 2 inch x 2 inch x 2 inch eg lids not attached to their containers
• Gable-top containers (cream, orange juice, milk etc)
• Scrap metal and spiral bound notebooks
• Paper food and beverage cartons, cups, containers (these have a plastic coating that is NOT acceptable, eg ice cream, frozen food boxes, hot/cold cups)
• Tyvek style and padded envelopes 
• Napkins/tissue paper/gift wrap
• Carpets/rugs

How Do I Dispose of Rigid Plastics?

The Town of Manchester is not currently able to separate out and send rigid plastics for recycle. These items; 5 gallon pails, children’s outdoor toys, plastic totes, garden chairs etc must now be disposed of either curbside in an orange trash bag or if too large, by pre-scheduling and prepayment with JRM as a curbside bulk item pick-up (800-323-4285). Multiple items per week can be scheduled. Please remember all trash, recycle and large items must be curbside by 7 am on your collection day.

How Do I Dispose of Batteries?

The Transfer Station now accepts standard Auto batteries for recycling with a $10 sticker pre-purchased from the Town Clerk’s office in Town Hall. Please see the attendant on arrival at the Transfer Station.

Please note button batteries, AAA, AA, C, D, cell batteries etc type small regular batteries are not recyclable and should be put in your orange trash bags.

OTHER RECYCLING OPTIONS

In addition to weekly curbside trash, recycling and kitchen compost collection and the Transfer Station, the Town of Manchester-by-the-Sea offers the following disposal options to residents:

• Motor Oil may be brought to the Highway Garage on Wednesdays; 5-gallon limit
• Construction Waste in small amounts  - if entirely contained within one orange trash bag – is accepted at curbside pickup; not allowed at the Transfer Station

Beyond the Bin

Massachusetts Universal Recycling List

Manchester began offering a town-wide curbside kitchen composting program in April 2014 with Black Earth. Residents may place food waste and other acceptable items in a curbside container for weekly pickup. 

Resources

• Curbside Kitchen Compost Guidelines 
• 3 Easy Steps to Curbside Kitchen Composting
• Curbside Kitchen Composting Facebook Page
• You Tube Video Delivering Compost Bins
• MBTS Sustainability Committee

Kitchen Composting Facts

Did you know curbside composting and recycling save you and your town money? 
The more you fill your orange bags with trash, the more your town has to pay to take it away. Did you know that it costs more than $65 per ton to get rid of your trash? It only costs $45 per ton to take composting away, and removing recycled products from your home is free. Composting is a great way to reduce the amount of money that your town spends getting rid of trash. Curbside composting can save the Town of Manchester at least $340,000 every five years, so make sure that you and your family are composting and recycling as much as possible! 

Did you know that because of our curbside compost program...
The Town of Manchester has received more than $65,000 in grants from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. This money can be used for high school Green Team projects, education, communication, and more recycling projects. There is SO much more money available for our town if more residents choose to recycle and compost!

Do you love Singing Beach, the woods, and the beauty of Manchester-by-the-Sea? 
30 to 40 percent of trash disposed of in orange bags is food waste. You can contribute to keeping our town beautiful by putting your food waste in a curbside compost bin instead. Rather than going into an incinerator that creates greenhouse gases, your waste will end up on a farm contributing to soil for our gardens.

April 2023 Update: A new compost site is currently under construction next to the Transfer Station on upper Pine Street. Once the project is complete operations will move from School Street to the new site. Learn More

The Manchester Compost Site is managed by Black Earth Compost. Black Earth will produce a high-quality compost using the food scraps collected curbside each week, as well as brush and yard debris dropped off at the compost site at 197 School Street. Finished compost will be available to the town's residents in the spring. We invite you to say hello and ask questions when you visit the site.

Accepted Materials

To ensure a high-quality compost product, please separate yard waste into three categories:  Brush, Yard Debris without grass, and Yard Debris with grass.

Brush:
Branches and Twigs
Woody Trimmings
Christmas Trees
No Wreaths (unless the metal wire has been removed)
No Rounds (place in separate Log/Firewood area)

Yard Debris with or without grass:
It can be difficult to separate grass from other yard debris. If you cannot, just put it all in the 'With Grass' section. If you can separate the grass, or you don't have any, please use the 'Without Grass' section.
Please, no brush in either section.

Examples of Yard Debris: Leaves, Evergreen Needles, Soil, Annuals, Flowers, Vegetables, Weeds, Non-Woody plants, Paper bags for yard waste collection (please rip open or empty at site if possible) 

Compost for Residents

The compost that we make this year will be available next spring for residents.

Hours of Operation

Please note the Open/Closed sign at the entrance to the compost site. If the sign says Closed, please do not continue up to the site even if the chain is down.  Site may close during any regular open hours if significant snow is falling or access road is icy. 

• Thursday:   9am to 3pm
• Saturday:    9am to 3pm
• Sunday:      9am to 3pm

The Transfer Station will be closed on Wednesdays until further notice due to the construction of the new compost facility. The Transfer Station will remain open on Saturdays from 10 AM to 3 PM. 

Stickers

One trip passes, metal items, TV/computer monitors, appliances and refrigerant items can be purchased in Town Hall at the Town Clerks office.

Transfer Station and curbside rules