Wisconsin's waste reduction and recycling law (Wisconsin Act 335) affects the way every individual and institution in the state disposes of materials--including businesses.

The waste reduction and recycling law requires that occupants of commercial, retail, and industrial facilities separate certain materials banned from landfills and incinerators from their waste, or send their waste to a facility that will recover those recyclables from other solid waste.

Owners of commercial, retail, and industrial facilities are responsible for providing a recycling program for their tenants.

If owners of commercial, retail, institutional, or industrial facilities do not have their postconsumer waste treated at an appropriate facility, the owners must:

Provide adequate containers for separating the materials banned by the recycling law from landfills and incinerators; Regularly notify all users and occupants of the facilities of their program to separate these materials for recycling; Provide for the collection and delivery of these materials to a recycling facility.

For More Information

The waste reduction and recycling law banned each of the recyclable items listed below from being disposed at state landfills or sent to incinerators, except where noted, as of the following dates:

[1] Incineration of these materials is allowed if energy is recovered at a licensed incinerator.

[2] Residents located in an area served by an incinerator licensed prior to May 11, 1990, and under contract on January 1, 1993, for at least one year with that incinerator, may send their combustible items (newspaper, magazines, cardboard, office paper and plastic containers) to the licensed incinerator. However, all residents and businesses must recycle non-combustible items (metal and glass containers).

[3] One-year variances may be granted for plastics #3-#7 and foam polystyrene in areas where markets for these items are lacking.