Alexandria residents living in detached, single-family homes, duplexes, and some townhouses with four or fewer units are required users of this fee-based service. Commercial properties and condominium complexes are not required users, but may participate at the City’s discretion for a fee.

To determine if you are eligible for City recycling service, visit: realestate.alexandriava.gov, then click on search properties and enter your address, then click on tax history.  You should be able to see a Refuse Fee assessed for each tax year.  

Schedule of Collection 
Trash, yard waste and recycling are collected once weekly, Monday through Thursday. Please refer to the  Refuse Map to determine your collection day.

Yard Waste Set Out Time  
Set out containers or paper bags no earlier than 5 p.m. the day prior to collection, and no later than 6 a.m. on collection day:

• Holiday "Slide" - If a City recognized holiday is observed on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, refuse and recycling collection 'slides' to one day later that week (except for Thanksgiving when refuse and recycling crews provide a Thursday collection on schedule). View the Holiday Collection Calendar. 
• Inclement Weather - If there is a delay for inclement weather, residents will be notified through the City Website and eNews.

Yard Waste Set Out Placement 

• All residents should set their yard waste in the same location where they receive trash service. 
• Please ensure that your materials and containers do not block sidewalks, driveways, etc.

Place yard waste into rigid/reusable containers or paper yard-waste bags (in autumn, please keep leaf bags separate). Please do not use your City-issued trash container for yard waste unless you want the material treated as regular trash. Collection for yard waste collection occurs on the same day as trash and recycling. Although the City does not provide paper bags or re-usable containers for yard waste, adhesive labels are available by request to be applied by the resident to their reusable container to identify its contents as yard waste.

Preparation

• Place yard waste next to your trash cart in reusable, hard-sided containers or paper yard-waste bags (Do not use your City-issued trash container).
• Each bag or container must weigh less than 45 lbs.
• Dirt, soil, mulch, sod, stumps, rocks, and stones are not acceptable (arrange for private disposal).
• Materials in plastic bags will be thrown away as trash and not composted.

Preparation

• Collection is available only for logs and  branches less than 18 inches in diameter and less than 10 feet long. No tree stumps.
• Place brush curbside, not in the yard or alley. Stack large items next to the curb.
• Overhead clearance of 25 feet is required (look for power lines and tree limbs).
• Do not mix lumber or construction debris with brush.
• Do not place brush by parked cars; 10 ft. of clearance is required.
• Do not stack brush against fixed objects such as poles, posts, fences, walls, or buildings.
• Do not block sidewalks.

Your preparation of material for collection is critical for us to recover resources, ensure safe collection, and leave the area neat and clean. If your material is not collected by the end of the day, check for a tag that explains why the City could not collect.

COMMON PROBLEMS INCLUDE

• Collection container, bag, or item is too heavy (each bag or container must weigh less than 45 lbs.)
• Brush, branches, and logs that are too bulky or heavy to fit into a container (schedule an appointment online for a "Bulky Yard Waste" collection)
• Contains unacceptable items such as dirt, soil, mulch, sod, stumps, rocks, stones, or construction debris (residents should call a private hauler to dispose of these items)
• Dangerous or messy liquids such as gasoline and undried paint
• Yard waste mixed with trash
• Yard waste set out in a plastic bag (these materials will be collected as trash vs. collected for compost or mulch)

Missed Bulky Yard Waste pick up? Please refer to "Bulky yard waste collection preparation" guidelines above.

No oops tag? Request a “Missed Collection” ticket on Alex311. If you need further assistance, call 311 or 703.746.4311.

Grasscycling involves leaving grass clippings on your lawn after mowing, to fertilize the grass and return nutrients to the lawn. Grasscycling is an alternative to throwing away the valuable nutrients in grass. To learn more about how to grasscycle, click here.

Compost is one of the most valuable resources for beautifying your landscape, preventing waste and saving money. Typical yard waste such as leaves, grass clippings, and shrub trimmings are some of the ingredients used to make compost. Finished compost is produced when bacteria and fungi break down organic matter in the pile or bin. Learn how to compost in your backyard.

From November through January, City crews operate leaf vacuum trucks and collect paper leaf bags. For information on dates and location of the leaf collection zones, click here. 

As leaves and wood compost, they become a valuable nutrient supplement for garden and lawn applications. Each spring, leaves collected each autumn are shredded in a large "tub grinder" to produce a product referred to as "leaf mulch." For additional details on mulch pickup and delivery, click here.