What to do with holiday trash? Here is what you can and cannot recycle in Spokane

While Christmas is a lot of fun, the holiday also leaves you with a lot of trash.

The wrapping paper, boxes and bags should be recycled when possible and thrown away when they cannot be reused. Each jurisdiction typically has its own rules, but here are some tips on how to recycle in Spokane.

• Break down and flatten all cardboard boxes and then place them in your blue bin to be recycled.
• Paper wrapping or bags can be placed in the blue recycle bin unless they are metallic or reflective. Remove the nonpaper handles from gift bags before recycling.
• Greeting cards can be recycled, but photography paper and envelopes with glitter should be thrown out.
• Compostable plates and paper products like napkins can go in your food and yard waste green cart until the next collection week, Jan. 6-10. Any coated plates, plastic silverware and foil pans need to go in the brown garbage cart.
• Batteries should never be placed in the garbage or recycling bins. They can be brought to Spokane’s Waste to Energy Facility for disposal at 2900 S. Geiger Ave. More information about battery disposal can be found at

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• Search for your items at the

• to see how they can be recycled or disposed.

Some items cannot be recycled. Plastic, bubble wrap mailers, paper envelopes lined with plastic and Styrofoam should be thrown away. Metallic paper and bags, tissue paper, ribbon and bows need to be thrown away. Christmas lights cannot be recycled.

Beginning Monday, the city will start picking up nonartificial Christmas trees. The tree must be 6 feet or less in height, and its trunk must be smaller than 3 inches in diameter. Branches that have broken off from the tree can be bundled next to the tree but must also not exceed 6 feet. If a tree or branch is longer than 6 feet, the owner can cut it in half before disposal. The city will not accept artificial trees or those that are flocked, or covered in a dusting of artificial snow.

If the tree follows these requirements, it can be picked up from the curb as part of normal trash pickup from Dec. 30 until Jan. 10.

Collected trees will be chipped and composted by the city.

Spokane Valley also does not accept shiny or metallic wrapping paper. The city does accept most other types of paper including colored paper, cardboard and junk mail.