Shawnee County

Facilities located within Shawnee County include a municipal waste landfill, a materials recycling facility, and a construction and demolition landfill, all of which are privately owned and operated. There are no active Transfer Stations located within Shawnee County.

The Shawnee County Solid Waste Department provides 43,000 residents and 1,100 businesses with solid waste and recycling services. In addition, another seven private companies provide solid waste collection services to County residents and businesses, and two of these seven private companies collect recyclables in Shawnee County

User fees are the primary funding mechanism for Shawnee County’s solid waste system. Currently, the Solid Waste Department charges residential customers within the Topeka city limits a monthly fee for waste and recycling collection services. Rural residential customers are charged a separate fee for these services. The Solid Waste Department also collects a surcharge on waste delivered to and disposed of at the Rolling Meadows Recycling and Disposal Facility.

In addition to these funding mechanisms, the Shawnee County Health Department collects licensing fees from haulers operating in the County. On an annual basis, each hauler pays a license fee, which is determined by the number of customers it serves, plus a permit fee for each vehicle it operates. Demolition landfills pay the County an initial permit fee and an annual permit renewal fee. Tire monofills are required to pay these fees as well.

The Solid Waste Department Director manages the day-to-day operations and determines the annual budget, which must be approved by the Board of County Commissioners.

Rolling Meadows Landfill
7361 US-75, Topeka KS 66618

(866) 909-4458

Mon-Fri: 7 AM- 4 PM
Sat: 7 AM - Noon

Household Hazardous Waste
131 NE 46th Street, Topeka KS 66817

(785) 286-4381

Mon-Thurs: 7 AM- 5 PM

Fri: 7 AM - 3 PM
1st Sat: 9 AM - Noon

Visit the Solid Waste Department page on the county's website for the most up-to-date list of accepted waste and associated costs.

Municipal Solid Waste (Trash)

Solid waste collection and disposal services are available to every resident of Shawnee County and are provided by the Solid Waste Department or private collection companies. Residential, commercial, and industrial waste generated within the County is collected at least once each week. The vast majority of waste materials collected in Shawnee County are delivered to the Rolling Meadows Recycling and Disposal Facility (RDF) for disposal. Residents can deliver refuse to the landfill using with own vehicles.

Shawnee County has a contract with Waste Management for the operation of the Rolling Meadows RDF, which is permitted through the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (Permit #0342) and included a 197 acre landfill. It is located north of Topeka directly west of U.S. Highway 75, north of NW 70th Street and south of NW 78h Street.

Service Levels

& Rates

All incoming loads are weighed at the scale. Landfill operators are trained to sample loads and keep records, and may reject loads containing unauthorized waste. Landfill fees are based on the type and weight of materials brought to the landfill and support the operating expenses, disposal issues, and environmental concerns. Visit the county's website for the most up-to-date list of accepted waste and associated costs.

Construction / Demolition Debris

Meier and Company, Inc. owns and operates a C&D landfill located north of the Kansas River and west of U.S. Highway 75 in Topeka. This facility is permitted through the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the Shawnee County Health Department.

In addition to the permitted C&D landfill, there are two other solid waste processing facilities in Shawnee County that handle construction and demolition debris. Both of these facilities are located in Topeka.

GreenPoint C&D Processing Center - concrete, brick, roofing materials, wood, sheetrock, all metals, masonry, cardboard
Bettis Asphalt & Construction, Inc. - asphalt, concrete, etc.

Although Kansas statutes do not require a solid waste permit for operation, clean rubble facilities in Shawnee County must be permitted through the County’s Health Department. The following is a list of clean rubble facilities permitted to operate in Shawnee County, all of which are located within the Topeka city limits.

Garick Biomass & Yard Materials Recycling Center - asphalt/concrete
Herman’s Excavating (2 sites) - asphalt/concrete
Native Stone Co., Inc. - asphalt/concrete
Meier Industries, LLC - asphalt/concrete
Schmidtlein Excavating, Inc. - asphalt/concrete
Brown’s Tree Care, LLC - asphalt/concrete
Frakes, Inc. - trees, yard waste, brush

Topeka Habitat for Humanity accepts reusable building/construction materials for resale through its outlet ReStore (located at 121 NE Gordon in Topeka). Accepted materials include tile, cabinets, windows, fixtures, furniture, appliances, etc. Exercise equipment, electronics, mattresses, mirrors that are not framed, and pool tables are not accepted.

Recycling

The county’s Solid Waste Department provides curbside collection of recyclables for its residential customers and collects recyclables from its commercial customers from dedicated, department-supplied dumpsters.

In addition, citizens are able to deposit their cardboard at designated drop-off locations

Drop off locations

Materials the Solid Waste Department collects from its residential and commercial customers, along with materials from the drop-off locations, are delivered to the Shawnee County Materials Recycling Facility (MRF) – located at the Rolling Meadows Recycling and Disposal Facility. The facility is owned and operated by Waste Management.

Items for recycling should be rinsed clean and free from food, but labels do not need to be removed.

Accepted materials include:
⇒ Plastic with with RIC symbol #1 , #2 , #5 ONLY.
⇒ Metals (steel, tin, and aluminum cans, clean pie plates, food containers, and aluminum foil)
⇒ Cardboard and Paperboard (cereal boxes, pasta boxes, shoe boxes, clean pizza boxes, etc.)
⇒ Office/ Mixed Paper (copy paper, envelopes, junk mail, flyers, etc.)

⇒ Shredded Paper
⇒ Newspaper and Magazines

⇒ Phone books & Paperback books

Materials NOT accepted:
× Trash bags or plastic wrap
× Plastic with RIC symbol #3 PVC, #4, #6 or #7 (NO Styrofoam or PVC)

× Wrapping paper

× Kleenex, paper towels, or toilet paper

× Food wrappers or coffee filters

× Electronic waste (computers, TVs, printers, DVD players, phones, etc.)

× GLASS

Flyer of

Accepted Materials

Glass

Shawnee County no longer accepts glass through its curbside recycling program. Instead, they have teamed with Ripple Glass, a Kansas City company that collects and recycles glass, to provide designated purple bins to select locations throughout the county. Residents can discard their glass products in the bins and Ripple then collects the materials and takes it to their processing plant for recycling.

Drop off locations

Ripple is equipped to process almost all kinds of household glass, from beverage bottles and food jars, to window panes, drinking containers, spent candles, and more! If you can see through it, they can likely recycle it!

Household Hazardous Waste

Wastes are typically considered to be Hazardous if they have labels with the words “Warning, Caution, Poison, &/or Danger”, as they usually mean that the product had ingredients that may have one or more of the following characteristics:

Corrosive, Toxic, Flammable or Explosive.

The county has a Household Hazardous Waste program and accepts approved waste, FREE of charge, from residents during regular business hours. NO out-of-county waste is accepted. NO business or commercial waste is accepted. Examples of these wastes include, but are not limited to:

Mercury and mercury containing items
Paints and Solvents
Household cleaning products
Pool Chemicals
Photo Processing Chemicals
Pesticides and Herbicides (and their containers)
Batteries (all types, except EV)
Oil and Automotive Fluids (eg. Antifreeze, Transmission fluid, Brake fluid)
Used Cooking Oil
Aerosol Cans (full or empty)
Empty Camping and Barbeque Propane Tanks
Compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs
Large mercury neon bulbs
Outdated medications (in pill and liquid form)
Used Needles / Sharps (in dedicated containers or any hard plastic or metal container)

Materials NOT accepted:

× Ammunition / Explosives × Asbestos

× Compressed Gas Cylinders × Infectious / Radioactive Waste

** Re-Use Program

Limited quantities of usable products (oil-based paints or stains, spray paint, car wax, pesticides, etc.) are available to organized groups and the general public. These re-use products are available for pick-up during regular hours of operation.

List of

Accepted HHW

Medical Waste / Sharps / Medications

There are no dedicated medical waste facilities in Shawnee County and these items items are NOT accepted at the landfill. Hospitals, medical clinics, and medical offices within the County are responsible for the proper disposal of their own medical waste. County citizens can dispose of containers filled with needles and other sharp items, as well as hazardous materials, FREE of charge, through the county’s Household Hazardous Waste program, where they will be stored until removed by private contractor(s). Proper preparation and protocols will be enforced.

County citizens also have the option to dispose of their unwanted and outdated medications through the Household Hazardous Waste program.

Batteries

Used batteries are typically accepted at local battery dealers for recycling. Lead-acid and lithium batteries are accepted as part of the county’s Household Hazardous Waste program in order to be recycled. They will NOT be accepted into the general waste stream.

In order to reduce the risk for battery-related fires and to keep them out of the landfill, Shawnee County Solid Waste Department Employees and Operators at the Rolling Meadows Recycling and Disposal Facility look for batteries while performing their random inspections of waste loads. EV batteries are NOT accepted at the landfill or as part of the county's HHW program.

Electronic Waste

E-waste (computers, TVs, printers, DVD players, phones, etc.) is accepted for recycling through the county’s Household Hazardous Waste program. There is no charge for disposal, with the exception of CRT TVs and monitors.

There is one other facility that is permitted through the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to process e-waste.

Asset Lifecycle, LLC - business electronics recycling & reclamation

Waste Tires

Tire dealers in the county accept used tires for a fee. Used tires are also accepted for recycling through the county’s Household Hazardous Waste program, with a maximum of 5 times per household. An approved contractor periodically picks up excess tires for disposal, where recycling is strongly advocated. No tires are accepted in the general solid waste stream.

There are two other facilities that are permitted through the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to process tires.

McPherson Landfill, Inc. / McPherson Area Solid Waste Utility
Stephen M. Gee / Gee Tires located in Rossville

Compost / Yard Waste

Backyard composting is highly encouraged for county residents.

The county Solid Waste Department’s trash service allows for up to fifteen (15) bags of yard waste leaves or grass (under 45 lbs per bag), which included leaves, grass, and bundled branches and trimmings. Bundled tree limbs are to be no longer than 4 feet in length and/or 18 inches in diameter. Most items will be picked up on the regular trash day. The waste goes to the Rolling Meadows Recycling and Disposal Facility to be added to an active cell with other municipal wastes.

There is one other facility that is permitted through the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to process compost.

Garick Biomass & Yard Materials Recycling Center - trees, yard waste, brush

Special Waste

Click here to details on any of the following wastes:

Agricultural Waste
Animal Carcasses
Asbestos
Bulky Items
Car Wash Sludge

Industrial Waste
Junk Vehicles / Farm Equipment
Medical Waste / Sharps
Natural Disaster Waste
Scrap Metal / White Goods