Recycling Collection

Recycling Temporarily Suspended - Posted March 6, 2026

City of Athens Sanitation Superintendent Terence Brown said until further notice, the City of Decatur is suspending acceptance of other entities' recyclable materials, including Athens.

Brown said Decatur reported the suspension is because of an equipment failure issue. Brown reached out to the City of Florence, but it cannot currently accept recyclable materials from Athens.

Brown said residents can set out the recycling bin for trash pickup, if needed. Residents can also check with Limestone County Recycling Center on North Jefferson Street to see if it is able to accept drop off recycling. Please note that recycling taken to the Limestone County Recycling Center must be sorted and placed in the correct bin.

The City of Athens will provide updates on curbside recycling service as information becomes available.

Recycling is not charged on the sanitation bill, but is a service that has been provided to not only promote recycling but to help save on the cost of landfill tipping fees.

Recycling Slider graphic about service
Recycling Slider graphic for west of 31 on first and third Mondays
Recycling info graphic for east of 31 on second and fourth Mondays
Recycling Slider graphic no pick up on fifth Mondays

Curbside Pickup


City residents receive a 96-gallon recycling can similar to their garbage can, if they choose to participate in curb-side recycling.

Those who live west of U.S. 31 will have recycling on the first and third Mondays, and those who live east of U.S. 31 on the second and fourth Mondays. This is subject to change if the city sees a need to enhance the routes. In months with a fifth Monday, there will not be recycling pickup on that fifth Monday.

Residents can put all of their recycling in the 96-gallon recycling container.

This service is for picking up recyclables from the curb. Rinse all containers thoroughly before placing them in the recycling bin. Please place bin on curbside by 6 a.m. on your collection day.

The City of Decatur serves as our vendor for recycling. Decatur and Florence are the only area centers that can accept curbside recycling (unsorted material). If Decatur has to suspend accepting outside entities' recycling materials for an amount of time, and Florence cannot accept our materials, the City of Athens will have to suspend curbside recycling until Decatur can resume full operations.

Decatur has a list of accepted items. In order for Athens to continue to utilize this service, citizens should follow these curbside recycling guidelines:

Do Recycle The Following:

  • Newspaper  - Recycle all newspapers and inserts.  
  • Paper Recycle regular mail, bulk business mail, office paper, school paper, paper brochures and handouts, cereal boxes, cake mix boxes, construction paper, magazines and catalogs. Please remove all plastic wrappers.
  • Steel/Tin Cans - Aluminum and steel cans. Rinse all food and beverage cans.
  • Plastic - All plastic bottles that have #1 or #2.
  • Corrugated - Cardboard All corrugated cardboard should be flattened and put inside the cart.                                  

Do Not Recycle The Following:

  • Garbage
  • Medical waste of any kind
  • Glass
  • Styrofoam 
  • Plastic toys
  • Oil containers of any kind
  • Plastic sheeting or large plastic containers
  • Clothing or other fabrics

Limestone County Recycling Center


City residents can also take cardboard, cans, paper and certain plastics to the Limestone County Recycling Center at 1301 N. Jefferson Street. Residents must sort their materials and place them in the appropriate bins. For more information, call 256-233-6422.

Recycling Can with decal
Please have bins to the curb by 6 a.m.