Trash & Recycling

Used cooking oils are a serious problem for home plumbing and Hillsborough County's wastewater collection system. Cooking oil that is poured down the drain gels and solidifies inside pipes, sewage lines and sewage lift stations, constricting water flow. That can back up home plumbing, and also cause equipment to malfunction, leading to sewage spills, overflows onto streets, and foul odors in homes and neighborhoods. Hillsborough County's Cooking Oil Recycling Effort is for residential cooking oil. Commercial and industrial customers must contact a licensed commercial grease hauler for cooking oil disposal.

Cooking oil DOs and DON’Ts | Reglas acerca del aceite de cocina

How I can make a difference?

1. Carefully pour cooled cooking oil into a large, sturdy plastic or wax-coated container, such as the original container, a juice carton, or a Cooking Oil Recycling Effort jug
2. Cap the container and store in a cool, safe location
3. Don’t mix the oil with any other liquids or products
4. Once the container is full, bring it to a Cooking Oil Recycling Effort station or to one of our Household Hazardous Waste Collection Centers

Request a presentation 

Did you know that Hillsborough County Public Utilities offers complementary educational presentations to community groups on the Cooking Oil Recycling Effort (CORE)/Unflushables Program? Standard presentations can be adjusted depending on your group size, and most presentations are 15-20 minutes in length. 

*Presentation requests must be submitted at least two weeks in advance, and please note that some presentations may not be fulfilled due to demand and scheduling conflicts.

Locations of Cooking Oil Recycling Effort stations

Bring your container of used cooking oil and grease to one of these locations at any time. Look for the brightly-colored, free-standing cabinet with the Cooking Oil Recycling Effort identification. See map and click on the categories below the map for location details.

Contact

For more information contact our Public Utilities Grease Management Program at (813) 272-5977, ext. 43515.

Learn about other things that should never go down the drain