It’s been three years since Gov. Kim Reynolds signed into law a bill gutting an important recycling law that had been in place for four decades. SF 2378 changed “the bottle bill” that another Republican governor, Robert Ray, signed in 1978, creating a 5 cent deposit on bottles and cans of soda, beer and wine […]
Recycling
Iowa City moves recycling drop-off from S Riverside center to new Sturgis Ferry Park location
The recycling containers at Iowa City’s South Riverside Recycling Center have moved further south, and can now be found at the Sturgis Ferry Park Recycling Center. The new location at 1700 S Riverside Dr is about a half-mile south of the previous center. “Materials accepted will remain the same: flattened cardboard, mixed paper and cartons, […]
Iowa City adds more glass recycling drop-off locations
Iowa City has added three new glass recycling drop-off locations, including one not actually in Iowa City. The new glass recycling containers can be found in parking lots of Upper City Park and the Robert A. Lee Recreation Center, as well as the Coralville Drop-Off Recycling Center at 950 Hughes St. Just like the recently […]
Rockin’ around the Christmas trash: A guide to recycling your holiday waste
Perhaps the worst part of Christmas is the inevitable clean-up afterwards: the mountain of empty boxes, shredded wrapping paper, string lights with burnt-out bulbs and the tree slowly going from beloved holiday symbol to fire hazard. But before you toss it all into the dumpster or stuff it into a garbage can, consider these ways […]
No Rummage in the Ramp this summer, but pop-up sites will offer an alternative for donating and recycling items
Rummage in the Ramp had been a staple of Iowa City summers for more than a decade, providing people moving mid-summer, and others with unwanted items at home, a way of getting rid of furniture and other household goods without sending them to the landfill. But COVID-19 canceled last year’s rummage, and concerns over the […]
Change is coming to curbside organic waste collection in Iowa City
There will be a big change to Iowa City’s curbside collection of organic waste next month. Starting on July 1, residents who put out compostable materials for curbside collection “will be required to utilize a City-issued organics cart (25-gallons or 95-gallons, yellow lid), paper yard waste bags (for yard waste only), and/or bundles for collection,” […]
Curbside collection of compostable waste canceled in Iowa City on Thursday due to anticipated winter storm
Iowa City is canceling curbside pick-up of compostable waste on Thursday due to the anticipated winter storm. Normal service for customers affected by the cancellation will resume on Thursday next week. Garbage and recycling collection will proceed on their normal schedule. “Please place carts in your driveway or on a cleared, flat spot,” the department […]
Iowa City is composting Christmas trees and curbside recyclers get the tree collected for free
As the holidays, like the rest of 2020, fade into the past, Iowa City residents with curbside recycling have an easy way to dispose of holiday evergreens going brown. Like other organic waste, formerly festive trees can be put at the curb and will be collected on the regular collection day. The trees will be […]
No more plastic clamshells, and other changes to Iowa City’s recycling program
Iowa City’s recycling program can no longer digest all those plastic clamshell containers that so many takeout meals come in, the city’s Department of Resource Management announced on Thursday. “The pandemic has caused a significant increase in the use of clamshells by consumers, which negatively impacts the quality of materials processed by plastic recycling companies,” […]
Watch: One trashy art show
Post Consumer Content, a series of art installations curated by artist Louise Fisher, featured the work of five area artists over the course of five weeks in July and August. Each week, one artist displayed work outside Public Space One that took used items most would discard, and showed how art can reveal the possibilities […]
Stores resume can and bottle redemption
Stores throughout Iowa have started redeeming cans and bottles again, returning the nickel deposits to customers. The temporary suspension of the state’s “bottle bill” expired on Sunday. In her March 17 public health emergency proclamation, Gov. Kim Reynolds suspended the legal requirement that stores which sell beverages in cans and bottles accept the containers’ return, […]
Another 344 Iowans test positive for COVID-19, as the state prepares to reopen bars
The Iowa Department of Public Health reported at 10 a.m. on Monday that another 344 Iowans have tested positive for COVID-19, including five residents of Johnson County and eight residents of Linn County. The total number of confirmed cases in the state as of 10 a.m. was 17,557. IDPH also reported another seven deaths from […]

