Public Works » Sanitation Regulations

Regulations Governing Residential Waste Disposal and Recycling
In order to provide you with information about the solid waste disposal service in the Borough, this bulletin is available for property owners to pick up and keep for reference. This enables you to fully understand the type of service provided in accordance with the Rules and Regulations established by Ordinance; and in some cases, the need to change certain regulations when practice and experience indicate a need for change.

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Twice a Week Rear Yard Garbage Service
What will it be picked up?

Garbage - held to mean all waste, animal, fish, fowl, fruit, and vegetable matter resulting from food consumption.

When will garbage be picked up?

North/West Route - Monday and Thursday: Consisting of the area west of Maple Avenue and homes which are situated in the area east of Maple Avenue bounded by Ackerman Avenue, Rock Road, and the Ridgewood - Glen Rock boundary line.

South/East Route - Tuesday and Friday: All remaining areas east of Maple Avenue.

Location and container types: Two 30-gallon capacity rigid plastic containers with tight fitting lids. They must be located behind the front building line, readily visible and accessible for efficient pickup. Note: Plastic containers will crack in severe cold weather. Reasonable care will be taken to prevent damage to your plastic containers during cold weather. However, the Borough must disclaim any responsibility for such damage.

Note: Be sure to check the Community Calendar for changes caused by holidays.

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Trash or Rubbish Pickup on Scheduled Wednesdays of the Month
What will it be picked up?
Held to mean normal household materials such as all wooden boxes, small appliances, furnishings, household equipment, utensils, clothing, and any other material which is not constituted as garbage. No materials or furnishings of any kind that emanate from a house fire or other unusual damage to a property will be picked up and disposed of by the borough. The owners of the property at their own expense must dispose of such materials and furnishings of all types. ( Please Note: Refrigerator and freezer doors shall be removed before placing at the curb.) The Borough urges residents to request the vendor to take older appliances known to contain Freon gas, when the new unit is delivered. All rubbish to be disposed of on curbside rubbish day must be put in bags or disposable containers and will be thrown into the sanitation truck. ALL ACCEPTABLE RUBBISH AND ITS CONTAINER LEFT AT THE CURB WILL BE TAKEN AND COMPACTED. Reusable metal or plastic trash cans or garbage barrels are not acceptable for holding rubbish at the curb on curbside rubbish pick up days and will be passed by.
When will garbage be picked up?
On scheduled Wednesdays - see your Borough Calendar (or check the Glen Rock website calendar on the home page). Rubbish must be placed at the curb after 7:00 p.m. Tuesday evenings and before 6:00 a.m.

Wednesday morning. The North West Side of town will be picked up on the first Wednesday of the month and the South East Side of town on the third ( 3'd ) Wednesday of the month.

If resident's err and place rubbish at the curb on Wednesday when there is no scheduled pickup, said rubbish must be removed by 8:00 a.m. the following morning (Thursday) or residents shall be subject to receiving a summons.

Where will garbage be picked up?

At the curb, and rubbish must be in clear plastic bags, bundled, or securely tied for easy handling and to prevent blowing and littering. No bundled, or containerized rubbish shall exceed 4 feet in length or 40 pounds in weight.

Do's & Don'ts:
DO:
  • Keep your two (2) plastic garbage cans (30-gallon capacity) in good condition with tight fitting lids. This eliminates the problem of odor, flies, and vermin. Plastic can liners are also helpful for this problem.
  • Have containers in place by 6:00 a.m. every collection day. Actual pickup time may vary.
  • Leave containers out of doors. Insurance regulations prohibit borough employees from entering any structure to make pickups and no exceptions are permitted.
  • Have paths shoveled to the containers in snowy and icy weather.
  • Call 670-3980 if your garbage has been missed or to lodge a complaint. Please place this call prior to 1:00pm on the same day as the miss or complaint so we can correct the situation promptly. Calls received after 1:00 p.m. must wait to the following day for correction.
  • Notify the borough at 670-3980 of any misconduct or damage done by the Sanitation personnel. Such damage must be personally observed to validate claims.
  • Keep your dogs secure so that sanitation personnel are not subject to injury when entering your property.
  • Bundle or wrap pet excrement so that it is not a health hazard or odor problem in handling. Plastic bag liners are required in such cases.
DO NOT:
  • Place newspapers, magazines, junk mail, aluminum and tin cans, plastic soda bottles, detergent containers, milk and water jugs, glass containers, and household batteries in garbage cans. Those must be recycled.
  • Place the rubbish at the curb before 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday evenings. Violators will be subject to littering penalties.
  • Put soil, rocks, stones, and other such debris in your rubbish containers. Such weighty material must be disposed of at the landfill.
  • Put any type of building materials or furnishings from construction jobs or from fire damaged property or vehicular parts out for pickup. You must dispose of said items by private scavenger. Call the Sanitation Department, 670-3980 for assistance and information on such matters.
  • Place loose materials at the curb. Please bundle securely so it does not blow over the streets or your neighbor's property. Acceptable rubbish and its container left at the curb will be taken and compacted. Reusable metal or plastic trashcans or garbage barrels are not acceptable for holding rubbish at the curb on curbside rubbish pickup days and will be passed by. Cardboard boxes must be recycled.
OFFICIAL HOLIDAYS: Those holidays that affect the regular pickup schedule are: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday, Lincoln's Birthday, President's Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veteran's Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. See your Borough Calendar or the calendar on this Glen Rock website home page for schedule changes necessitated by holidays.

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Recyclables Picked up at the Curb

Borough Ordinance requires that residents recycle the following materials: (that is, separate these materials from garbage and rubbish for special handling by putting at the curb as prescribed or by taking to the Recycling Center on Doremus Avenue.

  • Second (2nd) Wednesday of the Month -Aluminum, Tin, Plastic and Glass containers, jars and bottles (no other type of glass will be taken), that are rinsed clean of food wastes, and cap removed may be commingled in the same reusable collection container
  • Fourth (4th) Wednesday of the Month - Newspaper, Magazine's and Junk Mail can be commingled and may be placed in a reusable plastic container with cover, cardboard box or paper bag. Regardless on the container type, please secure the top to prevent the wind from blowing the contents away.

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Recyclables Not Picked Up
    • Used Motor Oil - Place in a clean plastic or metal (not glass) container that has a cap and take it to a local service station. By state law all service stations are required to take your used oil if properly containerized.
    • Used Tires - Tires and other automotive parts will not be picked up at the curb. When you purchase new tires have them keep your old tires as part of the purchase agreement. Some service stations will take your old tires for a nominal fee.
    • Used Batteries - Vehicle Batteries will not be picked up. Some service stations will take your old batteries for free.
    • Household Hazardous Waste Materials - Defined as paints, solvents, insecticides, acids, chemicals, poisons and any other material known to be toxic to man or the environment. Must be disposed of through the Bergen County Utilities Authority. State law prohibits the Borough of Glen Rock from accepting these materials. For information on disposal call:

      Household Hazardous Waste Hotline: (201) 807-5825

      Paint Hotline: (201) 807-8683

      Note: The Borough will pickup completely empty and dried up Latex paint cans on your normal rubbish pickup day.
Landfill Compost

The Recycling Center and Compost Area is registered and licensed by the State and strict regulations dictate how we operate the facility to maintain our license. Besides the requirements for extended buffer borders around the site, garbage or rubbish is strictly prohibited anywhere within the facility.

The borough's compost site is for use by borough residents only. Residents must have a current borough-issued sticker permit (these can be obtained at the police headquarters) clearly visible in order to enter the landfill area. These permits must be affixed to the drivers side rear window or drivers side window. Residents may take only their leaves and all vegetative lawn and garden debris to the site for composting. No other materials of any kind except "clean" soil and rocks shall be permitted to be dumped with vegetative materials. All containers such as boxes, cans, plastic bags, etc., used to haul the materials SHALL NOT be left at the compost site.

Use of the compost landfill shall be restricted to only those days and hours when it is scheduled for resident use. That schedule will vary with the seasonal demand use, and it will be posted by sign at the entrance to the compost site. In general, that schedule provides for the opening of the compost site in late March and closing for the season in late December, after the bulk of the leaves have fallen.

"GREEN" Recycling Program

Be advised that the Glen Rock Ecology and Environmental Committee continues to be actively engaged in the collection plastic soda bottles. The collection facility located at the Doremus Avenue Landfill. In addition to borough employees being available to assist you and to enforce the regulations, there are G.R.E.E.N. Members present are doing volunteer service such as baling the plastic containers for sale to the processing market. You are urged to participate and become a member.

Penalty Sanctions

Anyone caught and convicted of violating these rules and regulations shall lose the privilege of using the landfill and in addition may be fined.