Makenzie Read
Waste and Resources Manager
[email protected]
865-215-4311
SPECIALTY RECYCLING AND DONATIONS GUIDE [PDF]
We hope the information below helps to give your “waste” a second life while minimizing your contribution to the landfill!
The holidays bring families and friends together and are a wonderful time of year. Unfortunately, it is also the season when we typically generate extra waste. If you are unable to reuse the following materials please consider recycling them in your curbside cart or at a recycling drop-off center:
• Wrapping paper
• Tissue paper
• Gift bags
• Cardboard/ shoe boxes
• Plastic containers: cups, bottles, milk/juice/detergent jugs, & caps (attached)
• Holiday cards
• Gift name tags
• Holiday cookie tins (clean and dry- consider reusing or donating if still in usable condition)
*Not necessary to remove any staples or tape from these items for recycling
Holiday items
NOT accepted for recycling:
• Plastic bags/ any plastic film such as, bubble wrap, plastic air pillows, etc.
• Holiday ribbons and bows (please consider reusing these)
• Any
Styrofoam packaging (i.e.,
Styrofoam packaging peanuts,
Styrofoam blocks, etc.)
• Any ceramic or porcelain materials
• Any glass items that are not glass jars/bottles (glass bottles/jars can be brought to any of the 5 City recycling drop-off centers)
• Any holiday cards/ gift name tags with glitter, or other non-paper materials on them
Please also consider donating any holiday decorations or no longer needed household goods to any of the relevant stores listed under the "Donate!" section.
For holiday tree and lights recycling please visit:
Christmas Tree & Lights Recycling
DONATE VARIOUS ITEMS (Materials listed A-Z)
There are numerous area organizations that will reuse or resell your gently used donations. Please call them directly or visit their websites for more information. Several have complimentary pick up.
APPLIANCES, FURNITURE, TOOLS, AND CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
HABITAT FOR HUMANITY RESTORE: Visit KnoxvilleHabitatForHumanity.com or call 865-690-4214
• Located at 1511 Downtown West Boulevard
• Donations help families in our community become home owners
• Call to schedule a pickup if you are unable to bring donations to store
BICYCLES, USED BICYCLE PARTS, AND ACCESSORIES
KICKSTAND COMMUNITY BIKE SHOP: Visit KickstandKnoxville.wixsite.com/kickstand or send an email to [email protected]
• Located at 1323 North Broadway
• KickStand Bicycle Collective is an all-volunteer initiative to put bicycles on the streets of Knoxville and surrounding area by operating community bike shops, teaching bike mechanics, maintenance, and safe practice.
BLANKETS, TOWELS, AND PET SUPPLIES
YOUNG WILLIAMS ANIMAL CENTER & ANIMAL VILLAGE: Visit Young-Williams.org/Wishlist/
• Animal Center located at 3201 Division St
• Animal Village located at 6400 Kingston Pike #4833
BOOKS, CD'S, DVD'S, GAMES, RECORDS, ETC.
MCKAY'S: Visit McKayBooks.com or call 865-588-033
• Located at 230 Papermill Pl Way
• Please visit website for a more in-depth description of acceptable items
• McKay’s may offer you money back for your items
*Many thrift stores will take these items for donation as well.
CLOTHING AND HOUSEHOLD ITEMS
ANGELIC MINISTRIES: Visit AngelicMinistries.com or call 865-523-8884
• Located at 1218 N. Central Street
• Serves those in our community who have lost their belongings due to a house fire or other natural disasters and those who are coming out of homelessness or abusive situations wishing to start their lives over and have a second chance
GOODWILL: Visit GoodwillKnoxville.org or call 865-588-8567
• Call 865-584-7726 to find out if you are eligible for a FREE pickup.
• Goodwill has both retail stores and drop-off locations (see website)
• Donations ONLY accepted during open hours to keep items from being destroyed due to weather, theft, etc.
KARM: Visit KARM.org/KARM-STORES or call 865-521-0770 x 1
• FREE pickup available with a 1-2 day turnaround for furniture and large donations
• There are 15 locations within Knoxville (locations shown on website)
LADIES OF CHARITY KNOXVILLE: Visit LadiesOfCharityKnox.org or call 865-247-5790
• Located at 120 W. Baxter Avenue
• Serves those struggling in our community who may need emergency assistance with daily necessities such as KUB utilities, food, clothing, medicine/ medical equipment, rent, gas, baby care items, and other miscellaneous household items
• Please view their website for a full list of accepted items
EYEGLASSES
KNOXVILLE LIONS CLUB(S):
• Call Clare & Dave Crawford at 865-607-1898 or 865-403-9096 to schedule a drop-off.
• Used eyeglasses in good condition are collection for distribution internationally
FOOD
SECOND HARVEST FOOD BANK: Visit SecondHarvestETN.org or call 865-521-0000
• Located at 136 Harvest Ln, Maryville, TN, 37801
• Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee is leading the effort to compassionately feed East Tennessee’s hungry and engage the community in the fight against hunger.
• Find the closest food pantry by visiting SecondHarvestETN.org/find-a-food-pantry/ and find ongoing food drives at SecondHarvestETN.org/food-driver/ongoing/
• In addition to donations of food, SHFB also accepts the following items:
-Working pallet jacks
-Working freezers & refrigerators
-Working & complete walk-in coolers & freezers
OFFICE AND SCHOOL SUPPLIES
KNOX COUNTY SCHOOLS TEACHER SUPPLY DEPOT: Visit KnoxSchools.org/TeacherSupplyDepot or call 865-470-0750
• Located at 709 North Cedar Bluff Rd, Knoxville, TN, 37923
• The Knox County Schools Teacher Supply Depot is a collection center for donated new classroom materials provided free of charge to teachers, teaching assistants, and other school personnel in Knox County Schools.
• Donations can be delivered on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 9 AM to 4 PM.
• It is recommended that you call before delivering.
SHOES
SOLES FOR SOULS: Visit Soles4Souls.org/Give-Shoes for drop-off locations in Knoxville.
• Shoes must be new or gently worn.
• Soles for Souls provides relief through shoe distribution to those in need and creates jobs in developing countries through their micro-enterprise program.
There are many non-traditional items that
cannot be recycled through your curbside cart or at a recycling drop-off center. Please consider these other options for giving your "waste" a second life.
• Visit
Knoxvilletn.gov/Recycling for further curbside or drop-off center recycling information.
• All accepted recyclable items should be placed loose (not in any plastic bags) in your curbside cart or brought to a drop-off center.
GLASS BOTTLES AND JARS
Glass can only be recycled at the five City of Knoxville Recycling Drop-Off Centers. Visit
KnoxvilleTN.gov/DropOffCenters for hours and more information.
North: Goodwill Store - 5412 Pleasant Ridge Rd.
South: Chapman Highway - 225 W. Moody Ave.
East: Chilhowee Park/Magnolia Ave - 210 Alice St.
West: Cedar Bluff - 341 Parkvillage Rd.
Downtown: Old City - 227 Willow Ave.
ELECTRONICS
The following locations accept various types of electronics. Please call or visit their website for more information.
*Select Knox County Convenience Centers - visit KnoxCounty.org or call 865-215-5865. Dutchtown, Halls, John Sevier, and Karns are the ONLY accepted locations.
*City of Knoxville Solid Waste Management Facility - 1033 Elm St.
, visit Solid Waste Management Facility or call 865-215-6700
*University of Tennessee's Recycling Drop-Off Center - 2121 Stephenson Dr., Dock 24
*Goodwill - visit Goodwill Knoxville or call 865-588-8567 (will only accept certain appliances)
Best Buy - visit Best Buy
Batteries + Bulbs - visit Batteries Plus Bulbs or call 865-770-3368 (will only accept certain appliances)
* These locations also accept broken holiday lights for recycling
MISCELLANEOUS HOUSEHOLD ITEMS
KNOXFILL: 3211 South Haven Road, during store hours. Visit KnoxFill's Specialty Recycling page to find the latest information on what items they accept, in partnership with Terracycle.
ACCEPTED ITEMS:
ALKALINE ONLY BATTERIES
BEAUTY PRODUCTS & PACKAGING
BLADES, RAZORS, & PACKAGING
NATURAL & SYNTHETIC CORKS
PERSONAL & ORAL CARE
TERRACYCLE : Visit their Free Recycling Programs webpage for an exhaustive list of all the difficult-to-recycle materials you can recycle through them for free.
• TerraCycle is a waste management company that specializes in recycling materials that are difficult to recycle.
• Dozens of Knoxville businesses act as drop-off locations for various items including instrument strings, beauty products, contact lenses, blister packs, oral care, etc.
• Certain programs, like the
FREE baby clothes recycling program, do not require finding a TerraCycle box. Instead, you fill up your own box and are sent a shipping label to your address.
STYROFOAM EGG CARTONS AND MEAT AND PRODUCE TRAYS
Take to any area Publix grocery store, three locations in Knoxville.
Please remove the plastic wrap and absorbent liner. Cartons and trays must be clean and dry. Packing and other large Styrofoam is not accepted.
PLASTIC BAGS AND PLASTIC FILM
Using reusable grocery bags is much more sustainable than recycling plastic bags. Bread, tortilla, and other unavoidable plastic bags can be deposited at many local grocery stores
(e.g., Kroger, Food City, Walmart, Publix, etc.) Markets for these low-grade plastics fluctuate but generally remain low; contact stores directly for information about whether plastic bags are being recycled at this time.
CEILING TILES
Learn more about recycling your ceiling tiles at
Armstrong Ceiling Solutions
CHRISTMAS LIGHTS
Please visit
Christmas Tree & Lights Recycling for locations.
JUNK CARS
Many local nonprofits will accept unwanted or junk vehicles and then sell them to help fund their worthy causes. Search online for participating Knoxville nonprofits to inquire.