About
Please see both our mission statement and staff directory below. You may click on each title to expand or collapse the section.
Mission Statement
Sustainable materials management (SMM) is a systemic approach to using and reusing materials more productively over their entire life cycles. It represents a change in how our society thinks about the use of natural resources and environmental protection. By looking at a product's entire life cycle, we can find new opportunities to reduce environmental impacts, conserve resources and reduce costs.
Staff Directory
Christopher Andrade, Commissioner
Kevin Johnston, Deputy Commissioner
Mary Ellen Bridie, Sanitation Inspector Supervisor
Michael Des Gaines, Landfill Facilities Manager
Erich Weltsek, Recycling Coordination Aide
What We Do
The Department of Recycling and Sustainable Materials Management is responsible for the environmentally secure disposal of everything that residents no longer want. Federal and State regulations require specific disposal methods and limits that must be followed. These regulations address mandatory recycling, proper handling of hazardous materials, and environmental protection. The complexities and expenses are considerable. Collection and disposal requirements reflect these regulations. The following are the Department’s major responsibilities:
• Landfill, Ashfill and Transfer Station operations
• Contracted curbside collection from 1, 2 and 3–family homes
• Roadside litter and illegal dumping cleanup
• Inspection services
• Materials Recycling Facility operation
• Hazardous Material operations
• Equipment maintenance
• Public education
What is my carter required to do?
- Collect an unlimited number of 32 gallon containers (no bungees or attached lids) or bags (under 50 lbs) of household trash each collection day.
- Collect 4 additional bulk items on the last collection day.
- Collect commingled recyclables separately from garbage on Wednesdays.
- Sticker and leave waste that is not placed at the curb according to the town code.
- Collect yard waste separately from other solid waste.
All items for curbside collection must be placed at one curbside location per property. Waste items from your home must be placed in front of your home only.
What if my carter doesn’t do what he should?
If the carter is not complying, please alert the Department of Recycling and Sustainable Materials Management at 631-451-TOWN as soon as possible so that we can remedy the problem effectively. Complaints are recorded and tracked. If a pattern of non-compliance is found, financial penalties can be imposed.
FAQs
Recycling
How do I get a new recycling pail?
CURBY cans can be purchased for $20.00 at the Town Clerk’s office in Town Hall, at the Landfill, and at Manorville Compost Facility.
How do I get a recycling sticker for my pail?
Residents can request a free Recycle Brookhaven sticker to identify their recycling can by calling 631-451-TOWN.
How do I get a new recycling/yard waste calendar?
Residents can request a new calendar sticker by calling 631-451-TOWN or print at home.
How do I get a new recycling calendar magnet?
Residents can request a new calendar magnet by calling 631-451-TOWN.
Can I recycle Styrofoam?
Unfortunately, the Town of Brookhaven’s Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) does not recycle expanded polystyrene (Styrofoam) in any of its forms (packing peanuts, Styrofoam shipping coolers, etc.) You can put Styrofoam in your normal curbside garbage for pick up.
Can I recycle plastic bags at the Town?
The Town does not accept bags of any kind (zip top, shopping bags, garbage bags, etc.) because they cause damage to the equipment at the Material’s Recovery Facility (MRF).
Why does the lid need to be off recycling pail when not using a Curby?
If pails are not designated as “Recycling” the lid must be left off the pail so the carter can easily identify the contents.
When are the shredding events?
View our Special Recycling Events Schedule
Trash Collection
How do I dispose of….?
Please see the department’s Throwing It Out Guide for all your disposal needs.
What are my garbage days?
View our interactive map and enter your address in the search bar on the map.
Why didn't they take my garbage?
Residents are required to place their garbage out either the night before or before 6am of their scheduled day. Residents are required to use a 32-gallon pail, no heavier than 50 lbs., no attached lids or bungee cords. For more information please check the department’s Throwing It Out Guide or call 631-451-TOWN.
Why can't the carter come back if they missed my garbage?
Carters must continue collecting their routes to ensure finishing before the Town’s landfill closes. A complaint can be filed by calling 631-451-TOWN and the carting company servicing your area will be alerted.
When a waste day is missed due to holiday or cancellation, why don't we pick up the next day?
The Town is split for garbage days; Monday/Thursday or Tuesday/Friday and every Wednesday is for recycling. When there is a holiday the carter must keep the schedule servicing other areas.
Why doesn't the carter "just take 4 items off the pile" of bulk items?
Residents are allowed to put out no more than 4 bulk items on Thursdays or Fridays depending on where you live. If there are more than 4 bulk items out you may be in violation of the Town’s anti-litter ordinance and may be subject to a fine. It is against Town code to store litter on your property or at the curb.
What happens if something is dumped on my property?
Each resident is responsible to maintain their property and curb area. If something is dumped in front of or on your property you are required to dispose of it yourself.
Yard Waste
Can we use plastic bags for yard waste?
Yes, residents may use either plastic or paper bags, no heavier than 50 lbs., no more than 50-yard waste items each collection week. NO grass clippings.
When is yard waste pickup?
Please see the highlighted weeks on the recycling/yard waste calendar.
Recycling
Please view our recycling information below. You may click on each title to expand or collapse the section.
Curbside Recycling
For your convenience, beginning in January 2014, you can now mix recyclable paper, glass, metal, and plastic containers in one bin.
Easy as 1-2-3
1. Collect curbside recyclables in a recycling bin at home.
2. Place your recycling bin at the curb Tuesday night for Wednesday collection.
3. Repeat!
How to Prepare Recycling
• Empty and rinse all containers. Lids on containers and bottles are acceptable.
• Paper clips, staples, rubber bands, and plastic windows on envelopes and paper are OK.
• Please make sure your recycling bin has a lid to keep contents dry.
Please see the Throwing It Out Guide for how to dispose of the non-recyclable items listed below.
Acceptable Materials for Curbside Recycling
Cardboard
Cartons
Copy paper
Books
Shredded Paper (in clear plastic bags)
Junk Mail
Glass Bottles
Glass Jars
Plastics 1-7
Rigid Plastics
Metals (small)
Aluminum
Spray Cans
Tin
Steel
Unacceptable Materials for Curbside Recycle
Batteries
Cat litter
Chemicals
Containers of oil, pesticides, gasoline, chemicals
Drinking Glasses
Food Waste
Garbage
Glass (panes such as window or auto)
Household Hazardous Waste
Light bulbs
Medical waste
Mirrors
Needles/syringes/sharp items
Oil
Paint and paint cans
Plates
Plastic Bags
Plastic Utensils
Plastics with no number symbol
Pyrex
Soiled paper or cardboard
Styrofoam
Waxed or metallic paper
Yard Waste
Recycling Sticker / Can
Residents are required by law to participate in Brookhaven’s CURB (Clean Up Recycle Brookhaven) mandatory recycling program.
• CURBY Cans can be purchased for $20.00 at the Town Clerk’s office in Town Hall, at the Landfill, and at Manorville Compost Facility.
• Residents can request a free Recycle Brookhaven Sticker to identify their recycling can by calling 631-451-TOWN.
Know Your Recycling Rate
Recycling Schedule
How to Recycle for Businesses and Schools
Town code requires that paper and mixed recyclables be source separated at the generation site, collected separately from the generation site, and disposed of separately from other waste materials including regular garbage.
The Town of Brookhaven does not offer recycling pickup to businesses. Arrangements for disposal may include: direct marketing to a recycling company, contracts with permitted solid waste haulers for separate collection, contracts with other persons for separate collection, or direct delivery to a designated processing facility. Recyclables may also be brought to the town landfill in Brookhaven for a fee.
Mandatory recyclables include
• Paper (newspapers, colored inserts, copy paper, cardboard, etc.)
• Comingled Recyclables (plastics 1-7, glass, aluminum and bimetallic cans, etc.)
Non-Mandatory Drop-off Recyclables
• Used motor oil & filters
• Large scrap metal
• Yard waste
• Electronics
• Car/truck/boat batteries
• Clothing
• Fry oil
• Fishing line
Unacceptable Recyclables
• Pots & pans
• Silverware (knives, forks, etc.)
• Small appliances
• Containers with hazardous residue
Materials Recovery Facility (MRF)
The Town’s Materials Recovery Facility or MRF (pronounced “Murf”) initially opened in 1991. In 2014, the facility was retrofitted by Green Stream Recycling to be a single stream recycling
facility, allowing residents to place all their mixed recyclables (paper, cardboard, glass, plastics and metal) in a single bin recycling day. The updated MRF can separate and process up to 48 tons of mixed material per hour, or over 300 tons of material each day! All items collected curbside for recycling in Brookhaven provide revenue for the Town. Because of switch to single stream, recycling rates in the Town of Brookhaven have increased by over 20%.
To learn more, or set up a group tour, watch our video below or contact the Town’s Recycling Coordination Aide by calling 631-451-TOWN(8696)!
Special Recycling Events
Sustainability
Please view our sustainability information below. You may click on each title to expand or collapse the section.
Great Brookhaven Cleanup
Every spring, individuals and groups join the Great American Cleanup, the nation’s largest organized cleanup, beautification and community improvement program. The volunteers know that they really make a difference, and the results are dramatic! The communities look clean and beautiful, and there is a sense of hometown pride and accomplishment.
Last year nearly 3,300 Brookhaven residents joined over 5 million volunteers in more than 20,000 communities across America to pick up over 40 million pounds of litter, over 200 million pounds of recycling, beautify 81,000 miles of roadway, and clean up rivers, lakes and seashores in their communities. Learn more / sign up now
"Don't Bag It" Program
The "Don't Bag It" Program centers on a ban on Town collection of grass clippings. The Town advocates several possibilities to replace disposal of grass. These include use of a mulching mower, more frequent mowing with a conventional mower and letting the grass clippings lie on the lawn, and home composting of grass clippings (along with other organic materials). A more radical change is to adopt "xeriscaping" principles. This has come to mean a landscaping philosophy based on eliminating chemical and water intensive lawns where possible and plantings from local or regional sources, which do not require as much care and management as "artificial" gardens. Call 631-451-TOWN(8696) for more information.
Energy
The Town of Brookhaven, while maintaining its fiscal responsibilities, continues to be on the forefront of municipal pollution and carbon emission reduction, and energy and natural resource conservation.
Through Supervisor Romaine’s Green Energy and Sustainability Initiative, the Town has been “greening-up” its operations and facilities. Under the Supervisor’s Initiative, the Town has saved taxpayer money by utilizing new, and more energy efficient technologies alongside with renewable energy sources. Some examples of Town efforts include:
• Replacing street and traffic lighting with more energy efficient LED bulbs
• Use of solar, geothermal, and wind power as alternate sources of energy
• Addition of electric vehicles to the fleet.
All of these efforts lower operation costs and reduce Town carbon emissions. The Town’s Recycling and Sustainable Materials Management Department continues to monitor carbon emission reductions as part of an annual greenhouse gas emission inventory. From 2005 to 2016, the Town has reduced its fossil fuel derived carbon emissions by 29.6%!
Looking ahead…
Energy efficiency is a continued effort for the Town of Brookhaven. Plans for 2017-2018 include the installation of electric vehicle charging stations at Town Hall, installation of solar at two former landfills (Manorville and Holtsville), and rapid installation of LED streetlighting across the Town.
Education
The Town of Brookhaven offers a plethora of educational opportunities relating to the environment, waste reduction, green energy and sustainability. Presentations can be made to schools (grades K-12) and other interested organizations. Please call the Town’s Environmental Educator or Recycling Coordination Aide at 631-451-TOWN(8696) to set up a presentation. Group tours of the Town’s Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) can also be set up by contacting the Town’s Recycling Coordination Aide.
Green Gazette
For over a decade Brookhaven’s Green Gazette has been educating and entertaining Brookhaven Residents! This new-look Gazette will be published periodically – in a slimmed down package. One page is all you need to keep up to date with the green news around the Town. With a permanent home in the Department of Recycling and Sustainable Materials Management, Brookhaven’s
Green Gazette is just a click away! View Green Gazette
New York Recycles Poster Contest
Enter a poster to win a spot in the New York Recycles 2018 Calendar!
Poster Themes
New York Recycles!
Reuse--Trash to Treasure
Nurture Nature--Don't Litter!
Let Us Celebrate Composting!
Feed People, Not Landfills
View official rules, poster themes, and submission details
Everyone is a winner when you post a photo of yourself with your creation to #BrookhavenRecycles so friends and neighbors can see your environmental work of art.