Important Dates

Universal Recycling requires waste haulers to provide recycling service to their:

• Single-family residential customers and restaurants/bars (on-premise sales) by September 15, 2011
• Multi-family residential customers by January 1, 2013

Commercial businesses will be required to participate in a comprehensive recycling program no later than January 1, 2014.

As of December 1, 2010, the 5 cent refundable deposit is no longer charged on soda and beer bottles.

Instead, bottles that formerly carried the deposit now have a 4 cent recycling fee, which is not refundable. This fee will not apply to any additional containers.

Consumers had until January 31, 2011, to get refunds on bottles for which they paid a deposit.

Bottles still labeled with the 5 cent deposit may be on store shelves for a period of time after December 1, 2010. However, the store will not charge the deposit on these bottles and customers will not be able to return them for a refund.

The 4 cent recycling fee on each bottle will be paid by stores to the State of Delaware and will create the Delaware Recycling Fund, which will help purchase the bins and other equipment needed to offer curbside recycling throughout the state.

The 4 cent recycling fee will end on December 1, 2014, or possibly sooner if the recycling fee raises $22 million total. After that, there will be no deposit or fee charged on bottles in Delaware.

See Overview