The City of New York Department of Sanitation (DSNY) announced that core sanitation services will continue on the normal collection schedule during the city’s COVID-19 response. Residents should follow their normal schedule and place their material at the curb after 4 p.m. ET but before midnight the evening before their collection day. Anyone with questions about collection schedules should contact 311.
DSNY has suspended some services in order to limit person-to-person contact and to enable its workforce to refocus on core operations. Suspended services include food scrap drop-off sites and curbside and apartment building electronics collection programs. A full list of service suspensions is included below.
“As with other emergency situations, our employees remain steadfastly committed to serving the public and keeping the city healthy, safe and clean,” said DSNY Commissioner Kathryn Garcia in a statement. “New Yorkers depend on us, and we will continue to provide our most essential services to help keep our city healthy. We ask for residents’ patience and cooperation as we work to deliver these services as quickly and safely as possible.”
Like other city agencies and institutions, DSNY has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The department has prepared contingency plans for this inevitable situation to protect the safety of its frontline workforce. Residents may experience some delays in collection as these measures are implemented.
Additionally, to conform to current public gathering guidelines, some temporary closures, postponements and cancelations are in effect. Service suspensions (as of March 20) are:
Food Scrap Drop-off Sites
- Food scrap drop-off sites will be closed until further notice.
- Residents should not leave food scraps at these locations.
Household Hazardous Waste
- The spring SAFE events scheduled have been canceled. DSNY said it looks forward to hosting the next series of events in the fall.
- Special waste drop-off sites will be closed until further notice.
- Residents should not illegally dump waste at these locations.
Compost Giveback
- Compost giveback events scheduled in April have been canceled.
Electronics Recycling
- Curbside electronics recycling appointments are not being accepted at this time.
- Pickup requests for ecycleNYC are not being accepted at this time.
Textile Donation and Recycling
- Pickup requests for refashionNYC are not being accepted at this time.
- Greenmarket clothing collections are suspended until further notice.