Trash and Recycling in Laguna Beach

Laguna Beach has one trash company, CR&R, and the city runs the rules around it. Your pickup day, your carts and the free special pickups all come down to a few phone numbers and one street list.

Who collects and how you pay

The city holds an exclusive franchise agreement with CR&R. CR&R took over collection on July 1, 2024. Its Laguna Beach customer line is (949) 662-3819, and the same number handles cart changes, bulky items and hazardous waste pickups.

CR&R bills you directly each quarter, with invoices in February, May, August and November, due 30 days after the billing date. The city says the charges follow the number and size of the carts on your account. Before the switch they appeared on the property tax bill. The city’s Public Works office is at (949) 497-0711.

Your three carts

Every home gets three carts:

• Blue lid: recyclables.
• Green lid: food scraps, food-soiled paper and yard waste.
• Black lid: trash.

The green cart takes food scraps, grass, leaves, sawdust and small branches loose. If you want a liner, use newspaper, a paper bag or an approved compostable bag. Regular plastic bags are out, and so are palm branches, ice plant and animal waste. The city says used napkins, paper towels and biodegradable cutlery can go in the green cart too. CR&R publishes a sorting guide that the city links from its recycling page.

If you need a replacement cart, an extra one or a different size, call CR&R. The city says you can upsize the green and blue carts at no extra cost, and that residential rates follow the size of the trash cart.

Pickup days and set-out rules

Your day depends on your street. The city posts a street-by-street list, and some long streets change day by block. Glenneyre Street, for example, is Thursday for the 300 to 899 blocks, Wednesday for 900 to 1999 and Monday for 2000 to 2699. CR&R’s franchise requires it to start at 7:00 a.m.

Section 7.16.050 of the municipal code sets the cart rules: put carts out no earlier than 7 p.m. the day before, and bring them in by 6 a.m. the day after. Between pickups, store them in the garage, behind the house or in an enclosed outdoor area. The city’s FAQ adds a tip about theft. Only CR&R may take what is in your recycling cart, so the city suggests putting recyclables out by 7 a.m. on collection day instead of the night before. If someone is taking them as you watch, call the police department at (949) 497-0701.

If you cannot wheel the carts yourself, CR&R’s backyard wheel-out service fetches and returns them. The city’s 2026-27 rate sheet sets it at $32.87 a month as of October 2026, and free for residents with a disability who show proof, such as a DMV placard or a doctor’s note.

Holidays

There is no pickup on New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, July 4, Labor Day, Thanksgiving or Christmas. When one of those falls on a weekday, collection slides one day for the rest of that week. A weekend holiday changes nothing. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day, Veterans Day and the day after Thanksgiving are regular pickup days.

CR&R collects holiday greenery for three weeks after Christmas, into mid-January, in or next to the green cart. The city says it sends out details closer to December, so check for the exact end date then.

Bulky items

Residents get four free bulky item collections each calendar year, up to ten items each time. The city lists furniture, appliances and electronic waste as examples. More pickups cost extra. Bulky pickup runs separately from the cart route, and you book it online through CR&R’s Laguna Beach page or by phone.

CR&R also supplies temporary bins for remodels and clean-outs, from 3-yard bins to 40-yard roll-offs. Moving in? The moving checklist covers where boxes and truck parking fit into the week.

Hazardous waste, batteries and medicine

Do not put these in any cart. Where they go instead:

• Home pickup: four free household hazardous waste pickups a year, one per quarter. The city counts cleaning products, car care products such as used oil and filters, paint and electronic waste. Call CR&R to schedule.
• Batteries: the city lists the Community and Susi Q Center at 380 Third Street, which also takes compact fluorescent bulbs but not tubes. City Hall, 505 Forest Avenue, and the Public Works building, 479 Ocean Avenue, take batteries only.
• Unused medicine: the MedReturn box sits in front of the police department at 505 Forest Avenue, west of the front door, and is open around the clock. No syringes.
• Needles and sharps: CR&R supplies free mail-back containers. Pick one up at 479 Ocean Avenue or ask for home delivery.
• Paint: the city points to PaintCare drop-off sites for house paint, primers, stains and sealers. Call a site to confirm its hours.
• Flammables and propane tanks: Orange County’s four household hazardous waste centers take them free from county residents, including propane tanks of five gallons or smaller. OC Waste & Recycling’s number is (714) 834-4000.

Two drive-thru events run at City Parking Lot 16, 1900 Laguna Canyon Road, from 8 a.m. to noon, with proof of residency. Document shredding is Saturday, November 14, 2026, with a limit of 10 boxes or bags per car. The free paint, battery and e-waste drop-off is Saturday, May 22, 2027.

Food scraps and the state organics law

California’s SB 1383 aims to keep food and yard waste out of landfills. The city’s wording is plain: residents must separate organic waste from trash by putting all food and yard waste in the green cart. The city counts meat, fish, dairy, produce, bread, pasta, rice, eggshells, coffee grounds and plate scrapings as food waste.

Each home can have one free 1.9-gallon kitchen pail from CR&R. You can also use a container you already own. The city says plastic bags are not acceptable, and that lining the green cart with yard trimmings keeps it clean.

If you compost at home, the city’s Verified Backyard Composting Program lets eligible residents opt out of curbside organics collection and may bring a rate discount. You apply to the city, which can audit and rescind approval. For grease, soak it up with a paper towel and put the towel in the green cart. The city warns that grease poured down a drain hardens in the pipes and causes blockages, which ties into the sewer notes on the utilities page.

Who to call

• CR&R customer service, carts, bulky items and hazardous waste pickups: (949) 662-3819
• City Public Works, 479 Ocean Avenue: (949) 497-0711
• Recycling and Solid Waste Division: (949) 464-6677
• The first 30 days guide lists the other set-up calls for a new address.