Trash & Recycling

Trash and Recycling

East Rockhill Township residents must contract directly with licensed haulers for trash removal per Chapter 20 of the East Rockhill Township Codified Code which requires all residents, Commercial and Institutional Entities to have solid waste, recycling and yard waste collection service.

Single Hauler Trash District

The Pines trash district located off of Fifth Street and  the Park Hill Estates trash district located off of Old Bethlehem Pike receive trash services through a township-bid single hauler contract. The current contract will be in effect 1/1/2023 to 12/31/2026 plus 2 option years 2027 and 2028 with Republic Services and includes weekly trash and recycling tote collection, quarterly yard waste bundled or bagged and bagged leaves (no grass clippings), and monthly unlimited bulk waste collection with notice to hauler.  Republic Services can be contacted at 215-723-0400 or www.RepublicServices.com/account/signup. 

Private Collection

Those not residing in the trash district can choose a private hauler of their choosing.   Republic Services has extended the Single Hauler Trash Contract pricing and services to residents outside of the trash district.  

Trash haulers in East Rockhill Township must provide trash, co-mingled recycling and yard waste collection as part of the normal collection fee. They also must provide at least one collection each of leaves and garden materials, tree trimmings, and Christmas trees.

Recycling Hints

• Wash all bottles and containers. This keeps bugs away and prevents contamination.
• Throw the caps away.
• Put your newspapers in a paper bag or tie them in bundles.
• Do not place broken glass in recycling.

It is important to know exactly what your waste hauler accepts. Some haulers accept more materials than others. To find out exactly what your hauler accepts, contact their customer service department and ask them to send you information about what they recycle or visit Bucks County Recycling Portal.

Household Hazardous Waste

Bucks County’s Household Hazardous Waste Collection Program organizes several collections throughout the county each year for household hazardous waste. 

Electronics Recycling

With Pennsylvania's Law, Covered Device Recycling Act, electronic devices including computers, monitors, televisions, audio equipment, printers and other devices can no longer be thrown away with trash.  Bucks County provides drop off locations. 

Yard Waste

DEP has determined that yard waste must be separated from the waste stream for recycling. All waste haulers are required to provide a schedule for monthly collection of leaf and yard waste to residential, commercial, and institutional customers. You may not burn leaves or yard waste in Pennsylvania.

The Township offers residents only a drop off for residential yard waste at 1622 Ridge Road Monday to Saturday 6:00 AM to 9:00 PM and Sunday 6:00 AM to 1:00 PM.  Only branches under four inches (4") in diameter and brush are accepted in the dumpster provided.  No tree stumps, railroad ties, grass clippings, bamboo, bags or commercial landscaping waste is permitted.  The site is monitored electronically and violators are prosecuted.  Your private trash hauler is also required to collect yard waste and leaves (no grass clippings).

Documents

It's Easy to be Green

Why Compost?

One person creates 360 pounds of food and yard waste per year. Instead of going to a landfill, this waste can be transformed into rich fertilizer in your own backyard. Composting uses natural processes to encourage the rapid decomposition of yard clippings, leaves, and food. Compost can be mixed into soil or put around plants to add more organic material and nutrients and to help them grow.

Tips on Composting:  Leaves, grass clippings, fruits, vegetables, coffee grounds, eggshells, nutshells, saw dust (in limited amounts) and wood ash (in limited amounts) can all be included in a compost pile or bin. Meat, fish, dairy, animal fat, human or animal feces, and poisonous plants (i.e. poison ivy) should not be put in a compost pile (or compost bin). In addition, materials that attract pests and nuisance animals should be avoided.

Compost piles that contain food scraps should be kept in an enclosure of some sort. This enclosure needs to allow for occasional mixing. You can build your own or check your local hardware stores for pre-made compost structures. 

The type of materials that you put in your compost bin will affect the decomposition rate. For best results, be sure to add both leaves and nitrogen-rich food and grass. Materials such as fresh-cut grass and food waste require a lot of oxygen to decompose; whereas, materials such as dead leaves and dry hay do not. A balance of the two is necessary for good compost.

Try the following techniques to hasten the decomposition process:

• Place the pile in a warm place.
• Keep the pile relatively damp.
• Shred materials before placing them in the pile.
• Aerate the pile to increase the amount of oxygen. Mixing the pile occasionally will speed up the rate of decay. Mixing can occur as frequently as every three days or as infrequently as every six weeks.

Earth-Wise Shopping

Buy Recycled. Recycled materials are used to create new products. To maintain recycling programs, people need to purchase items made of recycled products. By purchasing recycled products, you are "closing the loop." Not only do you save energy and resources, but you also promote a new market. Recycled materials can be found in everything from back packs to bird feeders. Check products to see if they are made and packaged with recycled material.

Buy products with less packaging. Buying in bulk is one way to reduce waste from packaging. Watch out for bulk items that have individually wrapped items inside; buying these products does not help reduce waste.

Buy products that are reusable. Avoid buying one-time use products, such as paper plates, plastic forks, etc. Consider using cloth napkins instead of paper.

Bring your own shopping bags. How many plastic or paper bags do you use every month for shopping? How about a year? How about a lifetime? Using canvas bags (or similar reusable bags) eliminates the waste caused by using plastic or paper bags every time you go shopping. 

Waste Reduction

Eliminate junk mail. 4.2 million tons of junk mail were thrown in the trash during 1998 (US EPA, 2000). Not only can you recycle junk mail, you can choose not to receive it. Here are a few ways to eliminate unwanted junk mail.

• To stop credit card offer mailings, you can call 1-800-5-OPT-OUT.
• To get off most national mailings, contact Mail Preference Service, P.O. Box 9008, Farmingdale, NY 11735-9008.
• To get rid of specific catalogs or junk mail that you do not want to receive, contact those businesses directly and ask to have your name taken off their mailing lists.

Compost. You can compost leaves, grass, fruit and vegetables, coffee grinds, and more. 

Only Buy What You Need. When grocery shopping, avoid buying more food than you can eat. When painting, measure the walls before you buy the paint, so that you can buy just what you need.

Donate Your Clothes and Furniture. Many non-profit organizations, such as Goodwill and The Salvation Army, will accept used clothing, furniture, cars, and household goods. Some organizations will even pick up donations at your home.

Use Both Sides of the Paper. When using your home printer, consider printing on both sides of the paper. You can also use the back of unwanted paper for grocery lists, phone messages, and other notes.