Every now and then, I check in with our recycling hauler to uncover the rogue items sneaking into recycling carts or drop-off spots, where they absolutely do not belong.

The top five offenders currently crashing the recycling party are: general trash, wood scraps, Styrofoam, random steel bits, and plastic bags. Avoid these recycling faux pas at all costs.

Trash belongs in the trash bin, plain and simple. If your trash can is overflowing, call your trash hauler for backup or take it to the landfill yourself.

Plastic bags, like those pesky shopping bags, should either cozy up with your trash or find their way back to the store for recycling. Remember, never bag your recyclables — those bags jam up the equipment and might just end up in the trash anyway. The recycling facility where our recycling is eventually delivered to in Shakopee does not accept recycling in trash bags. If your recycling gets to their facility, they will throw it away due to the possibility that there may be trash in those bags, which will contaminate the clean recycling.

Got rigid Styrofoam? Rigid Styrofoam can be dropped off at the Household Hazardous Waste Facility in Marshall for free. Flimsy, flexible foam or peanuts? Nope, those go straight to the trash. All types of Styrofoam are a no-go for curbside or community recycling.

Wood pieces, from broken fences to rogue tree branches, are not welcome in the recycling bin or trash bin. Construction bits like 2x4s and shingles should head to the Lyon County Landfill’s Construction Demolition area for a fee. Tree debris, shrubs, or old flowers can join your compost or the city’s compost pile and are also not allowed in trash or recycling.

Random steel, like old grills or garden art, can’t go in the trash or recycling. Send them to Alter Metal in Marshall – give them a call for the scoop.

And about paint — if it’s unused or unwanted, bring it to the Household Hazardous Waste Facility in Marshall for free. Businesses should give us a heads-up first before coming to the facility. Got dried-out paint or empty cans? Toss those in the trash.

Same goes for any chemical-container empties, like lawn or cleaning products. These too, can go into the trash but not recycling. Empty aerosol cans also belong in the trash but not recycling. Let’s keep it clean and recycle right. If you have product that is still in the containers, please bring those to the Household Hazardous Waste Facility.

If you did not receive your 2026 curbside recycling calendar in the mail, please call our office for assistance! We have extra here at the Environmental office located at the fairgrounds in Marshall for pickup otherwise, we will be glad to mail you a copy too.

For those who are unaware, Lyon County has community recycling containers located in or near all of our communities in Lyon County. These are not for trash. Lyon County does not provide trash services. If you have too much trash or are doing some cleaning out, residents can call their trash hauler for assistance or self-haul trash to the Lyon County Landfill for a fee.

Residents can also sign up for TextMyGov to get alerts for recycling. We send out a curbside recycling reminder and starting this year, we will be sending out occasional text alerts about disposal issues that we may be seeing in our county. Directions on how to sign up for this free service is located on the Lyon County, Minnesota website. We will also use TextMyGov to alert residents of changes in recycling pickup such as when weather issues arise.

For more information or for any questions, please call the Lyon County Environmental Department at (507) 532-8210, email lyonenvironmental@co.lyon.mn.us The Lyon County Landfill can be reached at (507) 865-4615.