Join the City of Richmond, CA and Republic Services to learn about properly sorting waste, state and local laws, and exploring available recycling resources. This informative session is open to all ages and is a great opportunity for City Staff and the Richmond Community to enhance their recycling and sustainability knowledge. In-person attendees will receive FREE Zero Waste gear and food!

• Date: Friday, February 20, 2026
• Time: 11AM-12PM
• Where: 440 Civic Center Plaza, Richmond, CA 94804 (City Council Chambers)
• RSVP Here: https://2026-richmond-recycling-training.eventbrite.com/

This training will be hybrid and available on Zoom.

• Zoom link: https://ci-richmond-ca-us.zoom.us/j/87268918153
• Webinar ID: 872 6891 8153

Provided:

• Spanish Translation
• Food (amount will depend on amount of RSVPs)
• Super cool Zero Waste gear (limited supply)

Holiday Tree Disposal Options for Richmond Residents/ Opciones para la disposición de árboles navideños para residentes de Richmond!

For more information please contact Republic Services at 510.262.7100 or visit, RepublicServices.com/Municipality/Richmond-CA

1. NEW! No-Charge Curbside Natural Holiday Tree Collection (12/26/2025 - 1/16/2026) - Residential customers may now place your natural holiday tree curbside next to your carts on one of your regularly scheduled collection days between 12/26/2025 and 1/16/2026 for no charge collection. Please note that your tree may be collected by a different truck than your carts. Artificial and flocked trees are not accepted and should be broken down to fit in your black/brown trash cart.

 Important Set out instructions: 

• Leave natural tree at your curbside next to your carts by 6 a.m. on the same day as your regular collection day between 12/26/2025 and 1/16/2026. 
• Trees must be accessible and at the curb in order to be collected for composting. 
• Trees that do not follow guidelines cannot be picked up.

 Important Guidelines for Curbside Holiday Trees

• Remove all lights, ornaments, tinsel, nails and stands. 
• No flocked, painted, fireproofed or artificial trees or trees contaminated with decorations, stands or plastic/cloth wrappings.
• If trees are more than 6 feet tall, must be cut in half.

2. Place Tree in Your Cart - Cut your tree and place it in your cart for collection on your regularly scheduled collection day. Please note, tree must fit with the lid closed for safe collection. Natural trees should be placed in your green organics cart with decorations removed. Artificial and flocked trees should be placed in black/brown trash cart.

3. On-Call Curbside Clean-up - If you have not already used your allocated On-Call Curbside Clean-ups, call Republic Services to schedule a no-cost curbside pickup at 510.262.7100. Trees more than 6 feet tall must be cut in half.

4. Self-Haul (Drop-off) to the Golden Bear Transfer Station through first weekend in February 

• 1 Parr Blvd, Richmond, Monday – Friday, 7 a.m. – 5 p.m. and Saturday – Sunday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
• Must show proof of Richmond residency (driver’s license or CA ID)
• NO COST for compostable trees
• There is a disposal fee for non-compostable trees or no proof of residency

FREE Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) and Mattress Drop-off Program for Richmond Residents 

The City of Richmond encourages residents to utilize the FREE Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) and mattress drop-off program at the West Contra Costa HHW permanent facility. Proof of residency will be checked at drop-off. The facility is located at: 101 Pittsburg Avenue, Richmond. 

View the flyers below or visit the website for details on what's accepted, maximum number of mattresses allowed per month, and State HHW transportation requirements: https://www.ci.richmond.ca.us/1720/Hazardous-Waste 

• Location: 101 Pittsburg Avenue
• Days Open: Every Wednesday - Saturday 
• Time: 9:00 AM- 4:00 PM (closed from 12:00-12:30 PM for lunch)

Food Bank of Contra Costa & Solano Food Distribution Sites in Richmond

The City of Richmond encourages Richmond residents to take advantage of the Food Banks located in the City of Richmond. Food Bank of Contra Costa & Solano strives to support Richmond residents experiencing hunger or food insecurity. 

Please find Food Distribution sites located in the City of Richmond and the map here: 

• List of sites: https://www.foodbankccs.org/map-city/richmond/
• Map: https://www.foodbankccs.org/find-food/foodbycity/

Any community members interested in volunteering or donating, visit: 

• Volunteer: https://volunteer.foodbankccs.org/
• Donation: https://www.foodbankccs.org/give-help/

MCE's Home Energy Savings Program - Save energy and money!

The City of Richmond encourages Richmond Residents to see if they qualify for MCE's No Cost Home Upgrade program. Increase comfort and reduce bills with Energy Savings! MCE can help you save money and energy while making your home more comfortable for years to come. Qualifying single-family homeowners and renters can receive a energy assessment, upgrades that lower your energy bill, and free energy-saving gifts for the whole family – ALL AT NO COST.

Learn more at: https://www.mcecleanenergy.org/home-savings/

GRID Alternatives' Annual No-Cost Solar Sign-Up Workshop for Low-Income Homeowners!

On July 23, 2025, in partnership with GRID Alterntives’, the City of Richmond hosted a successful No-cost Solar Sign-up workshop. This informative session was a great opportunity for eligible Richmond single-family low-income homeowners to learn about the GRID Alternatives’ free solar program, Energy For All, and receive assistance in applying for the program.

For more information visit: www.richmondenvironment.org or www.energyforallprogram.org/dac1/

Video Recording: https://youtu.be/vEO9ZemNhh4

California Senate Bill SB 1383 Short-Lived Climate Pollutants (SLCP)

Beginning Monday, September 9th, Republic Services in partnership with Cascadia consulting, will be starting the annual route reviews/audits of randomly selected residential, commercial, and industrial customers. Audits will include flipping lids, looking inside all three containers (trash, green and blue), documenting, taking pictures and leaving a tag on the cart of what they found and will provide education to the customer. The teams will be in a car with a Republic Logo on the door and wearing our safety vests representing Republic.
  
 The project purpose is to promote behavior change among residential and business communities to: 
 • Reduce contamination in recycling and compost
 • Migrate recyclables and compostables from trash
 

For more recycling information visit, www.republicservices.com/municipality/wccc-ca

This is one of the many California Senate Bill (SB) 1383 requirements. The goal of SB 1383 is to reduce short-live climate pollutants. RecycleMore, the West Contra Costa Integrated Waste Management Authority, has additional compliance information and will post more information as it becomes available.

• Business owners visit, Mandatory Commercial Organics Waste and Recycle Law (SB 1383)
• Multi-family property owners visit, Mandatory Multi-Family Organics Waste and Recycle Law (SB 1383)
• Residents visit, Mandatory Residential Organics Waste and Recycling Law (SB 1383)  

Additional information and resources can be found at, SB 1383 Short-Lived Climate Pollutants (SLCP) | Richmond, CA - Official Website.

Annual GRID Alternatives' No-Cost Solar Sign-Up Workshop for Low-Income Homeowners!

The City of Richmond in partnership with GRID Alternatives invited eligible Richmond and North Richmond Homeowners to GRID Alternatives' Annual No-Cost Solar Sign-Up Workshop on Monday, July 29th, 2024. This annual workshop provides information about the City's no-cost solar program for low-income homeowners, time to answer any questions, and for eligible attendees to sign-up for the program.

Workshop Recording: https://youtu.be/JjBC7JkvWs4

For more information about eligibility, homeowners should contact GRID Alternatives by phone,(866) 921-4696 or (510) 775-9162, email (baoutreach@gridalternatives.org) or complete an online form at https://www.energyforallprogram.org/richmond/ | (Español). 

Residents may also contact the City Staff at (510) 620-6512

I Heart Richmond Resource Guide

Checkout the new I Heart Richmond English and Spanish community resource guide. Together let's keep Richmond clean, green, and beautiful! 

I Heart Richmond is a City-wide beautification and clean-up initiative led through a collaboration of several City departments and community-based organizations. To learn more about upcoming volunteer opportunities, programs, resources, and City Council presentations visit, www.ci.richmond.ca.us/IHeartRichmond

Richmond Rising: Healthy, Connected, and Climate Strong

On October 27th, 2022, Richmond was awarded a $35M Transformative Climate Communities (TCC) Round 4 Implementation Grant by the California Strategic Growth Council. A brief summary of the Richmond Rising grant application is include below. For more information visit: California Awards $96 Million for Climate Projects in 10 Frontline Communities | California Governor. 

Richmond Rising: Healthy, Connected, and Climate Strong. In addition to the nine projects listed below, Richmond's application included Transformative Plans for community engagement efforts, workforce development programs, and displacement avoidance policies and programs in the Iron Triangle, Santa Fe, and Coronado neighborhoods. For any questions, please contact Beatriz Guerrero at, Beatriz_Guerrero@ci.richmond.ca.us.

1. Neighborhood Complete Streets: walking and biking improvements on Harbour Way, Ohio Ave, and AC bus stops.
2. Richmond Wellness Trail, Phase 2: walking and biking improvements to connect with Phase 1 to make a beautiful trail all the way from BART to the waterfront.
3. E-Bike Lending Library: long-term and short-term e-bike access for free to residents to improve carbon-free mobility options.
4. Resilient Homes for Healthy Communities: residential solar panel installations and home energy efficiency and health and safety upgrades at no cost to income-qualifying residents.
5. Basins of Relations: residential greywater systems and rainwater capture systems at no cost to income-qualifying residents, installed by local youth who receive training in watershed stewardship and installation.
6. Bosque del Barrio: tree planting throughout the project area to create a healthy urban forest.
7. ADA Accessible Garden: edible and pollinator garden at Unity Park with specially designed planting beds so seniors and wheelchair users can comfortably participate in gardening and community activities.
8. Orchard for ALL!: creating a distributed orchard through fruit tree giveaways, with tree care and harvest support offered in exchange for a share of the harvest, which will be distributed at free farm stands and in veggie boxes.
9. Veggie RX: prescription veggie boxes in partnership with the local health clinic, to provide free fruits and vegetables as preventative care along with community health workers and programming to support change to a more sustainable diet.