OC Waste & Recycling serves the County’s waste disposal needs by providing waste management services, operating public landfills, protecting the local environment, investing in renewable energy enterprises and promoting recycling in order to ensure a safe and healthy community.

The department provides essential public services for residents and businesses in the County’s 34 cities and unincorporated areas. Our three active landfills reflect environmental engineering at its best.

OCWR currently operates greeneries in Irvine, San Juan Capistrano and Brea, co-located at each of the three active landfill sites. The full-circle recycling program starts with curbside residential collection of green and organic waste that is turned into high-quality compost and mulch. These products are then given back to the community as a free resource to enrich gardens and landscaping. Composting helps reduce greenhouse gasses and preserves future landfill capacity.

Our renewable energy program manages the beneficial reuse of landfill gas through power-generation partnerships that produce more than 378,000,000 kWh of electricity in 2024. This is enough energy to power almost 48,000 homes in Orange County.

In 2024, OCWR, reduced total operational greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 22,300 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.