Rhode Island is a beautiful place to call home, and we want to make sure it stays that way! Each year, in honor of Earth Day and the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) with Save The Bay, Resource Recovery supports community litter cleanups across the state. By waiving the fees to dispose of the litter collected by dedicated volunteers, we are able to help community groups who would otherwise be unable to conduct cleanups. If your group is planning to do an Earth Day cleanup between the last Saturday in March and the first Saturday in June, or during the International Coastal Cleanup in September, you may be eligible to have your disposal fees (tip fees) waived. You can either work directly with your municipality to secure support through our program, or private groups can request the waiver directly from Resource Recovery. Be sure to preregister with Save The Bay to be eligible for the International Coastal Cleanup tip fee waiver.

Please download and review our Tip Fee Waiver Policy below. You will also be able to download the announcement memo and tip fee waiver authorization forms for municipalities and private groups on March 1 for Earth Day and September 1 for the International Coastal Cleanup. Each authorization form is a fillable Microsoft Word document that you either type directly into and print, or print and fill out by hand.

For participating groups, fees for the disposal of non-solid waste items (e.g. leaf and yard waste and bulky items such as tires, appliances with Freon, mattresses, tires, car batteries, etc.) are listed in the current fiscal year’s Fee Schedule. You can also view the list of accepted and prohibited materials in our Materials Acceptance Criteria.

Here are some Earth Day and International Coastal Cleanup resources from other RI organizations:

Looking to get involved in a cleanup? Check out the State of RI's Litter-Free Rhody events page, the Providential Gardener's RI cleanup events calendar, Save The Bay's shoreline cleanup calendar and list of International Coastal Cleanup events, Keep Blackstone Valley Beautiful's Great American Cleanup, contact your city or town, or start your own!

The Narragansett Bay Commission offers Earth Day cleanup grants for organizations in their service area, typically due mid-February.