Trash & Recycling

GARBAGE COLLECTION

Each resident is provided with one green 90-gallon rollout container for garbage collection. Depending on availability, additional garbage or recycling containers can be obtained. Bags must be placed inside the can to ensure collection. Garbage collection takes place on either Monday or Tuesday depending on the street and must be out on the street by 7:00 am the day of pickup to ensure collection. If you have backdoor service, please make sure cans are accessible.

• View garbage collection types and rates here
• Find your garbage collection day here

Overflow garbage, recycling, and cardboard can be taken to the large capacity compactors at the Kestrel Court Recycling Center. Containers are material-specific and signage is posted to help residents identify what containers to use. Click here to see the informational video

BILLING

There is no cost for curbside collection as a result of the Towns subsidy. A full detailed listing of the service types and corresponding costs is outlined below. Bills are mailed annually in July for the service year of July 1 to June 30. If you wish to change the type of service you receive, please contact the Town at 843-768-9166. Service changes can be made year-round.

QUESTIONS ABOUT TRASH? CALL 843-768-9166

Recycling is conducted island-wide every Wednesday, year-round. Recycling must be placed inside the cans to ensure collection.  Recycling cans are gray. Cardboard and cardboard boxes must be broken down and placed inside either the recycling or garbage cans (recycling encouraged). All recycling bins must be placed curbside by 7:00 am. If you have subscribed to twice weekly backdoor service, your recycling bin will be collected at the house on this day.

We offer single-stream recycling. All materials must be placed in the container.

ACCEPTED MATERIALS

• Aluminum & Steel Cans: Rinsed and clean metal food and beverage cans and empty aerosol cans (labels can be left on containers)
• Glass: Rinsed and unbroken jars and bottles (caps, lids, and labels can be left on containers)
• Plastic Bottles & Containers: All plastics with a recycling symbol. Please rinse soda bottles, milk jugs, detergent bottles, etc. No plastic bags.
• Paper: newspapers, office paper, envelopes, junk mail, greeting cards, catalogs, books/textbooks, posters, sticky notes, paper bags, wrapping paper
• Paperboard & Corrugated Cardboard: corrugated cardboard boxes, soda/beverage boxes, shoe boxes, gift boxes, clean food boxes
• The containers at Kestrel Court and the Municipal Center accept broken down and flattened corrugated cardboard boxes
• More recycling guidelines 

UNACCEPTED MATERIALS:

• Plastic bags (i.e., shopping bags, cereal bags, trash bags)
• Plastic wrap (i.e., thin plastic food wrap or shrink wrapping/product packaging)
• styrofoam packaging or food containers
• household garbage
• shredded paper
• food waste
• yard waste
• bulky plastic items (i.e., toys, hangers)
• batteries
• light bulbs
• electronics
• clothing and shoes
• construction debris (i.e., wood, insulation)
• rope-like items (i.e., garden hoses)
• medical waste (i.e., syringes)
• diapers or sanitary products
• propane tanks
• aluminum foil and trays
• motor oil and cooking oil
• paint
• empty aerosol (spray) cans
• view more recycling guidelines 

Product quality is very important. If you are unsure if the item is recyclable or not, please look for the universal recycling symbol before you place it in a recycling container.

RECYCLING DROP SITES

• Kestrel Court off Sora Rail Road next to the Berkley Electric Substation
• Municipal Center at 4475 Betsy Kerrison Parkway

Yard debris collection takes place on Thursday and must be placed at the curb by 7:00 am. Yard debris must be near the end of your driveway.

Leaves and grass clippings must be placed in paper bags or they will not be picked up. Do not put these materials on your neighbor’s’ property or on an unimproved lot. Do not place your debris near telephone, electric, cable TV, sewer or water accesses or fire hydrants. Debris placed on a fire ant hill will not be picked up.

Shrubs, tree limbs, stumps, and logs should be less than 4 feet long and be no more than 4 inches in diameter. It is the intent of the Town to collect and dispose of only the routine landscaping needs of residents – spring and fall cleanings, lot clearing, etc. should be handled by the individual property owners.

The collection service will remove yard debris accumulated at dwelling units and unimproved lots. The service is not designed to accommodate land clearing at vacant lots, homes under construction, or community rights-of-way.

Lawn/commercial services must take all yard debris with them that would be removed from residential/rental properties. Lawn/commercial services must not leave their waste/debris/removal behind on site.

The Town of Kiawah Island collects Brown Trash quarterly. All brown trash must be placed on the curb by 7:00 am to ensure collection. Included in the cost of curbside, backdoor and Saturday service.

For larger items such as refrigerators, washers, dryers, etc., please call Carolina Waste at 843-576-1100 to schedule a pickup at an additional cost.

What classifies as Brown Trash?

Lawn chairs, grills, folding or beach chairs, mattresses & box springs (single or twin only), bicycles, strollers and small appliances (vacuums, toaster ovens, toasters, microwaves).

To dispose of hazardous waste, homeowners must transport items to the Bees Ferry Landfill. Hazardous material cannot be placed at the curb. Proof of residency is required to utilize the landfill. Full-time residents can provide proof of residency by their ID. Part-time residents will need a bill (showing a Charleston property address proving property ownership) and their ID.

What classifies as Hazardous Waste?

Computers, Monitors, Televisions, Printers, household & garden chemicals, used motor oil, oil filters, antifreeze, paint and paint remover, varnish, pesticides, batteries, CFL/Fluorescent/incandescent bulbs.

DOCUMENT DESTRUCTION DAY

The Town provides complimentary shredding services for all Kiawah residents once a year. The day changes each year but is typically in the middle of April. Documents should be brought to the Town Hall garage at 4475 Betsy Kerrison Parkway for disposal on designated days. The Town will update the website with revised schedules at the beginning of the year.

To dispose of electronic waste, homeowners must transport items to the Bees Ferry Landfill. Electronic waste cannot be placed at the curb. Proof of residency is required to utilize the landfill. Full-time residents can provide proof of residency by their ID. Part-time residents will need a bill (showing a Charleston property address proving property ownership) and their ID.

Examples of Electronic Waste: Computers, Monitors, Printer, TV’s

If you have an automobile you would like to donate, please contact Wheels For Wishes. They are a nonprofit car donation program that auctions and recycles donated vehicles, with the proceeds benefiting Make-A-Wish South Carolina.

• LEARN MORE

BedShred.com, an initiative of Charleston Mattress®, is committed to keeping your old mattress out of landfills through aggressive recycling and disposal procedures. Every discarded mattress is destroyed and recycled, meaning components are never refurbished or reused in bedding again. For fees and scheduling click here.

The Town partners with Bicycles for Humanity Charleston (B4H)  for our bicycle collection program. B4H Charleston is a local chapter of a global grassroots movement, Bicycles for Humanity, which collects used bicycles and ships them to needy African communities.
Bikes can be in any condition, and collections take place quarterly. To schedule a pickup, contact Sarah with B4H at 843-768-4407 or betsyquinn@icloud.com.