Trash, Recycling and Bulk Pickup in the Town of Oyster Bay

Rules in the Town of Oyster Bay are specific about timing, container size and what leaves the curb. This page follows the Town’s Sanitation Department and recycling pages. Hazardous waste for Sea Cliff residents is covered under STOP below. For phone numbers, see the town and village halls guide, and for the rest of the move, the moving checklist.

Garbage set-out rules

The Department of Sanitary Collection Services picks up nearly 1,000 tons of garbage each collection day. The same department oversees recyclables and yard waste collection and the STOP and Homeowner’s Cleanup programs at the Solid Waste Disposal Complex.

Place garbage curbside, not in the roadway, in appropriate containers or plastic bags, not earlier than 5 p.m. on the evening before scheduled collection. Three container and bundle limits apply:

• The Town does not service pails larger than 32 gallons, pails with attached lids or pails designed for mechanical collection.
• Carpet, sheetrock, lumber and similar bulky material must be tied in bundles of no more than 50 pounds and no more than four feet in any direction.
• A total of 10 items, not exceeding 200 pounds, may go to the curb on any one collection day.

Large items and appliances

Three large items, such as refrigerators, air conditioners or large pieces of furniture, may go to the curb on any collection day. Remove the doors from refrigerators and freezers first.

Homeowners Cleanup, a separate drop-off program, collects non-hazardous waste only, including air conditioners, all e-waste and campers. It also takes clean broken concrete, large metal items, propane tanks and propane torches, tires and yard waste. Boats and boat trailers need proof of ownership, with oil, gas, other fluids and batteries removed. Free paper shredding is for residents only, up to four bankers’ boxes of paper. The program is open to residents within the Town’s Solid Waste Disposal District, with proof of residency. For the accepted list, visit the Town’s cleanup page or call (516) 677-5848.

Holiday collection

Nine holidays cancel sanitation and recycling collection when they fall on a regular collection day: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Regular collection continues on Lincoln’s Birthday, Washington’s Birthday, Columbus Day, Election Day, Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. A Town notice confirmed normal collection on Columbus Day, while Town offices were closed.

Residents who are not getting the automated robo-calls can call Public Safety at (516) 677-5350 to be added and receive updates, information and cancellations.

Yard waste

Yard waste is grass clippings, weeds, leaves, tree trimmings, branches and twigs, hedge and shrub clippings, small roots, other garden and yard waste, and Christmas trees. The Sanitation Department gives yard waste collection schedules by phone at (516) 677-5848.

Recycling: the S.O.R.T. program

S.O.R.T. stands for Separate Oyster Bay’s Recyclables Today, and the program began as a pilot project in 1987. It currently services over 80,000 homes within the Town’s Solid Waste Disposal District and the Villages of Farmingdale and Massapequa Park, plus more than 1,100 businesses. Residents are issued a yellow S.O.R.T. container, and a new bin is requested at (516) 677-5745.

Remove all packing material, foam peanuts and bubble wrap from cardboard, because those materials are not recyclable. Remove plastic bags as well, because they cause the automated sorting system to fail.

Plastic, metal and paper details

Plastic: rinsed rigid bottles, jars, jugs and Tupperware go in the pail, and plastic chairs and toys do not. Metal: aluminum, tin and steel go in, including rinsed beverage and food cans, aluminum foil, pans and empty aerosol cans. Cans of paint, bed frames and long poles stay out.

Paper: newspapers, catalogs, phone books and mail are accepted, and paperback books too, with hardcover covers removed. Larger cardboard can be broken down to 4-foot lengths and tied next to the pail. Shredded paper is accepted in paper bags and boxes. Waxed paper and food-contaminated containers, including pizza boxes, are not accepted.

Household hazardous waste: STOP

On certain dates, the Town permits residents to bring household hazardous substances to its Solid Waste Disposal Complex at 101 Bethpage-Sweet Hollow Road, Old Bethpage. The Sanitation Department lists the complex at (516) 755-1820. The Village of Sea Cliff does not run its own S.T.O.P. program, but its residents can take part in the Town’s. The Village’s page points to the Town’s STOP line at (516) 677-3281. That page lists hours of 9AM to 4PM, and its archived dates are from 2022, when six Saturdays ran from April 30 to October 23.

The summer 2026 schedule, announced June 26, 2026, put STOP days on Saturday, July 11 and Saturday, August 8, from 9am to 4pm. Homeowners Cleanup Days and free paper shredding ran Saturday, July 25 and Saturday, August 22, from 8:30am to 4pm. The sources carry no fall 2026 dates.

The STOP program collects asbestos (double bagged), automobile batteries and automobile tires, with or without rims. It also takes brake and transmission fluids, drain and oven cleaners and fire extinguishers. Fluorescent bulbs, gasoline, pesticides and insecticides are on the list. So are oil-based and latex paint and outdoor gas grill propane tanks. Photo chemicals, rechargeable and button batteries, small aerosol cans and smoke detectors are accepted. The list ends with solvents, spot removers, thermostats, waste motor oil and antifreeze, and wood preservatives. Improper disposal of products such as waste oil, oven cleaner or paint thinner could contaminate your water supply. Anything poured on the ground or put into cesspools, storm drains or recharge systems can work its way down to the aquifer or waterways.