Kitaakita garbage collection

Most garbage in Kitaakita and Kamikoani is collected regularly and free of charge.

The types of garbage collected fall into three broad categories: burnables, non-burnables (i.e. metal goods and dangerous goods), and recyclables. In practice however, the various categories of recycling are each generally collected separately (with a few exceptions). The schedules vary based on area and/or region.

The Clean Recycle Center in Kitaakita is also much more flexible with their direct drop-off times (multiple days a week for most items). They do charge for this service.

While the majority of items can be disposed of at your local collection area, a few specific items require special procedure for disposal.

Garbage in Kitaakita/Kamikoani must be disposed of in designated burnable or non-burnable garbage bags. Only garbage bags from Kitaakita/Kamikoani are accepted in Kitaakita/Kamikoani.

Garbage Bags

Garbage collection in Kitaakita is partially funded through the sale of designated garbage bags. Garbage will not be collected unless it is disposed of in the proper type of designated bag.

There are two types of garbage bags in Kitaakita:

• Burnables (opaque bags with 燃やせるごみ in red lettering)
• Non-burnables (transparent bags with 燃やせないごみ in blue lettering)

Each of these types comes in two sizes: large (大; dai) and small (小; shō).

Collection Schedule

Your collection schedule will depend on which area of Kitaakita City you live in. Make sure you check your schedule beforehand, and take your garbage on the proper day. Kitaakita City Hall distributes color-coded schedules for each area to residents.

Instructions

• Separate your waste into the correct category and use appropriate garbage bags.
• Place your garbage at the designated pick-up points before 7:30am on the day of collection.
• Always write your name on the garbage bags, and if there are large items that do not fit in said bags, a sticker or piece of paper with your name must be affixed.
• Golden Week and New Year holidays have a different schedule to normal.
• If you have any questions, please ask another JET, your Board of Education supervisor, or City Hall.

See the full Kitaakita City garbage chart here: File:KitaakitaGomiChart.pdf

Categories of Garbage

Burnables

Chart of burnable garbage

Notes about burnable garbage (translated and added where appropriate in this section)

To be placed in a 燃やせるごみ burnables bag.
Items longer than 1m must be cut (items which cannot be cut must be disposed of at the Clean Recycle Center - see below).

• fiber-based products

(e.g. cotton-stuffed futons, blankets, beach towels [cut to fit inside trash bag], carpeting [cut into 50cm squares], clothes)

• kitchen waste

(e.g. food scraps, shellfish, egg shells, cooking oil)

(kitchen waste should be drained of liquid as much as possible)

• tape goods

(e.g. video cassettes, audio tapes, CDs)

• aluminum goods

(e.g. aluminum baking cups, foil, nabeyaki udon metal foil)

• leather goods

(e.g. shoes, bags [remove any metal components])

• rubber goods

(e.g. rubber boots, rubber hose [cut to less than 50cm long])

• sheeting

(e.g. blue tarpaulins, leisure sheets (cut into 50cm squares)

(rolled items should have a sheet of paper attached with your name on it)

• sponge goods

(e.g. sponge bedding mats [cut to fit inside trash bag])

• small wooden household furniture

(e.g. wooden dressers [less than 50cm wide on any side])

• hygienic goods

(e.g. paper diapers, feminine hygiene items)

• plastic goods

(e.g. brushes, cutting boards, bowls, buckets, kerosene tanks - any plastic goods without a プラ recycling mark)

(kerosene tanks must be completely emptied before disposal)

• tree twigs, leaves, weeds

(must be shaken free of soil and dried for 2 or 3 days)

(less than 5cm thick, less than 50cm long, and bundled less than 30cm in diameter)

• tatami mats

(cut into 3 pieces each and bundled criss-cross)

• plastic siding

(cut into 50cm squares)

• etc.

• 
  fiber-based products
• 
  kitchen waste
• 
  tape goods
• 
  aluminum goods
• 
  leather goods
• 
  rubber goods
• 
  sheeting
• 
  sponge goods
• 
  small wooden household furniture
• 
  hygienic goods
• 
  plastic goods
• 
  tree twigs, leaves, weeds

Non-burnables

Chart of non-burnable garbage

Notes about non-burnable garbage (translated and added where appropriate in this section)

To be placed in a 燃やせないごみ non-burnables bag.
Items in containers must be affixed with a piece of paper with your name written on it.
Items must be less than 1m.
Broken items with fragments which may scatter easily can be gathered into a box or transparent bag before disposal (the box or bag itself will not be collected, so please come to retrieve it after collection).

• Metal Items

• cooking-ware

(e.g. pots, kettles, frying pans)

• electrical appliances

(e.g. stove tops, heaters, heated blankets, fans)

(items must have batteries removed and be completely drained of fuel)

• spray cans

(e.g. sprays, portable stove cartridges)

(items must have their contents emptied and be punctured [e.g. with hammer and nail])

• galvanized sheet iron

(once cut into 50cm squares)

• batteries

(e.g. alkaline batters, rechargeable household batteries)

• umbrellas
• aluminum caps
• children's bikes or unicycles

(less than 1 meter long and without tires)

• small electrical appliances

(one of 12 designated small electrical appliances)

(these can also be disposed of in designated collection boxes - see below)

• etc.

• Dangerous Items

• edged tools

(e.g. knives, scissors)

(items should be placed into small cardboard before disposal)

• ceramics and glass
• fluorescent and incandescent light bulbs

(wrapped into paper)

• unrecyclable cans and bottles

(e.g. cosmetic bottles, manicure bottles, perfume bottles, oil bottles, cans which can't be cleaned)

• nails
• metal wire
• electrical cords
• etc.

• 
  cooking-ware
• 
  electrical appliances
• 
  fluorescent and incandescent light bulbs
• 
  ceramics and glass
• 
  unrecyclable cans and bottles
• 
  batteries / umbrellas
• 
  edged tools
• 
  galvanized sheet iron
• 
  spray cans
• 
  small electrical appliances

Small Electrical Appliances

An Electrical Appliance Collection box

Certain small electrical appliances are collected in collection boxes around the town.
Restricted to items which can fit through the 15cm x 25cm mouth of the collection box. Precious metals extracted from items you recycle here will be used to make the medals at the 2020 Olympics.
The following 12 types of items are designated for collection.

• cell phones
• digital cameras
• video cameras with LCD displays
• CD players
• electronic dictionaries
• video game cartridges
• handheld game consoles
• video game consoles
• memory cards
• motherboards
• hard drives
• PDAs

Recyclables

Chart of recyclables

Notes for recyclables (Translated and added where appropriate in this section)

To be placed in a 燃やせないごみ non-burnables bag, or directly in collection area container, depending on the collection area.
These items must have the appropriate recycling symbol somewhere on them to be eligible (unless no symbol appears in the following list).

• cans

Aluminum (アルミ)

Steel (スチール)

(e.g. steel or aluminum cans once cleaned)

(plastic lids should be disposed of in burnables; metal lids should be disposed of in non-burnables)

• glass bottles

(NO SYMBOL)

(food or drink bottles only)

(must be cleaned and all caps removed)

(must be further divided into clear/brown/other colors)

• paper goods

Paper Packs (紙パック)

Paper (紙)

(NO SYMBOL for newspapers/magazines/cardboard)

(e.g. milk cartons, paper products, or newspapers/magazines/cardboard)

(milk cartons must be washed and cut open)

(milk cartons with aluminum lining cannot be recycled)

(milk carton collection varies by collection area - please be aware)

(newspapers/magazines/cardboard must be bundled with paper-based cording separately by type)

• PET bottles

PET bottles

(once cleaned)

(label and cap should be removed and disposed of in "plastic containers and wrapping")

• food trays

(NO SYMBOL)

(white [on both sides] food trays only, once cleaned)

(colored trays should be disposed of in "plastic containers and wrapping")

• plastic containers and wrapping

Plastic (プラ)

(once cleaned [items which can't be cleaned should be disposed of in burnables])

(dispose of cleaned, non-white food trays here)

(since wasabi, toothpaste, etc. tubes are difficult to clean, they should be disposed of in burnables)

• 
  cans
• 
  glass bottles (clear)
• 
  glass bottles (brown)
• 
  glass bottles (other colors)
• 
  paper goods (paper packs)
• 
  paper goods (paper, newspapers, etc.)
• 
  PET bottles
• 
  white food trays
• 
  plastic goods (plastic containers)
• 
  plastic goods (wrapping)

Non-disposable

Non-disposable garbage

Notes about non-disposable garbage (Translated and added where appropriate in this section)

This is a list of garbage that cannot be disposed of at your local collection area. To dispose of this kind of garbage, ask your JTE or your BoE supervisor.

• large items

(e.g. couches, beds, dressers, skis, spring mattresses)

(Please consult with your local city hall branch [or BoE supervisor])

• household appliances

(e.g. refrigerators, freezers, washing machines, dryers, TVs, AC units)

(return to place of purchase or to an outlet which deals in similar products)

• computers

(e.g. desktops and laptops)

(consult with manufacturer)

(eligible for Takuhaibin Collection - for details, see the Rinetto Japan homepage [search: リネットジャパン])

• unprocessable items

(e.g. tires, fire extinguishers, metal drums, propane tanks, concrete blocks, paint cans, car batteries, car parts, safes, fireworks, bowling balls, living trees, boilers, construction waste, fertilizers, wire rope, pesticides, garden stones)

(consult with place of purchase or a local private disposal company [recommendations available on request])

• commercial waste

(e.g. waste from: stores, offices, factories, hospitals, farms)

(commercial or farm waste [regardless of whether industrial or general] will not be collected. Consult with a private disposal company for industrial waste. General waste is accepted at the Clean Recycle Center)

• large amounts of household garbage

(e.g. from moving or cleaning)

(as a rule, large amounts of garbage must be disposed of at the Clean Recycle Center)

Clean Recycle Center

Information for the Clean Recycle Center in Kitaakita.

NOTE: all phone lines are Japanese-only.

For Self-delivery
Note: the information in the above image is out of date; the translation below is accurate as of 17:25, 4 October 2021 (JST)

Drop-off location	Garbage types	Drop-off days	Size	Hours	Fees
Clean Recycle Center (150 Bozawa Aza-onomiyaato Kitaakita-shi)	Burnable Non-burnable Recyclable	Mon~Sat	Items under 1m×1m×2m (Some items may not be accepted)	8:30~12:00 12:45~16:30 (Sat ~15:00)	￥82/10kg (Tax included)

For Inquiries
(all Japanese-only)

• Environmental Section, Lifestyle Division, Kitaakita City Hall

☎0186-62-1110

• Moriyoshi City Hall Branch Office

☎0186-72-3115

• Aikawa City Hall Branch Office

☎0186-78-2100

• Ani City Hall Branch Office

☎0186-82-2113

• Clean Recycle Center

☎0186-63-2343

Symbols

Recycling symbol on a paper carton

Recycling symbols used in Kitaakita

	Aluminium (アルミ)
	Steel (スチール)
	Paper Pack (紙パック)
	Paper (紙)
	PET bottles (ペットボトル)
	Plastic (プラ)

See also

• Garbage collection in Akita City
• Kitaakita garbage information page (Japanese)

QR Code linking to this page

Old Kitaakita City garbage chart (in Japanese).