Basic Rules for Disposing of Recyclable Material
(Taken from the Setagaya Municipal Newsletter, August 1, 1999)

For more information or clarification of items on this page, please contact your ward office. Contact information can be found on TWK's "Tokyo Metropolitan / Tama Area Ward and City Offices" page.

Newspapers and magazines: Separate the items by type, tie them in stacks with string crossways and take them to a recycling association.
Paper cartons: Wash them with water, cut them open and dry them. Then take them to a nearby recycling association or to the collection box at a nearby supermarket, retail store, public facility, etc.
Other paper: As processed paper such as thermal paper for word processors and faxes, carbon paper and photographs, cannot be recycled, dispose of them with burnable waste.
Aluminum and steel cans: Wash them with water and lightly crush aluminum cans. Then take them to a recycling station or nearby recycling association.
Dry-cell batteries: Take dry-cell batteries that contain mercury to the collection box at City Hall, District Administration office or a sub-branch office. Return rechargeable (nickel-cadmium) batteries and button type lithium batteries to the collection box of a store selling batteries.
Glass bottles: Take these to a recycling station (take returnable bottles such as beer bottles, to a nearby liquor store).
Other glass: As bottles that once contained oil or medicine, or other types of glass cannot be recycled, dispose of them with non-burnable waste.
Old clothes and cloth: Give still-wearable clothes a second life by taking them to a recycle shop, flea market, bazaar or similar location.
Oil used for deep-frying, etc.: This is collected twice a month by community assembly halls and other public facilities.
Fallen leaves and food waste: If you squeeze out the water and bury it in the garden, this material will return to the earth as compost. The City will help obtain compost container and subsidize the purchase of a kitchen waste treatment unit.
Food trays: Take these to the collection box at a nearby supermarket, retail store, etc.
PET bottles: Take these to the collection box at a nearby supermarket, convenience store, etc.
Furniture and electrical appliances: Try selling these at recycle shops, flea markets, etc. Also check your ward's newsletter for an area where you can give away your used items.

NOTES by Tokyowithkids:
"Paper Cartons" refers to milk and juice cartons, but not the ones with the thin aluminum layer on the inside (such as those holding corn soup).

"Food Trays" refers to the styrofoam trays used for sale of meats/fish, etc. and generally only the white ones are recycled, but maybe some places can handle the ones that have a hard coating with some design.

"PET bottles" refers primarily to bottles containg beverages, but most soy sauce bottles and some other plastic bottles have the same triangle PET mark with a "1" inside and can also be recycled the same way.

"Setagaya-ku" does things this way, but your ward or city may do things a bit differently. If you have local information regarding recycling please take a moment to type it up and send it to us contact us link above, so that we can include it.

Do you know anything that should be added to this page? Please tell us.