Where I live, they have a great recycling system. A few years ago, Alameda county, CA voted to divert 75% of all solid waste from the landfill, so we have some great programs in place.

You get one small trash bin for anything that can't be recycled.

You get one huge bin for anything that can be recycled: glass, cans, any kind of plastic bottles and plastic food tubs, aluminum foil, any scrap aluminum, any kind of paper or cardboard, and dry cell batteries (put those in a ziploc bag, not loose in the bin). And it all goes in that one bin together, so you don't have to separate it --- they do that later in a huge facility.

You also get a green "orgaincs" bin that most people use for yard waste like grass clippings or leaves, but you can also put any kind of food waste in it, even old prepared meals or meat and cheese (things you would never put in your own compost), and you can also put in any kind of food-soiled paper like old pizza boxes or take-out containers (paper too soiled to go into regular paper recycling). All of that gets composted at an industrial-scale composting facility.

They provide special bags and jugs for oil filters and used motor oil, and will just pick that up at the curb for you on your regular trash day. There is a drive-thru place where you can drop off houshold hazardous waste --- they don't even want you to get out of the car, just pop the trunk and these guys in moon suits take it out of your car. Sometimes they will give you a free bag of compost when you drop off, if you want one.

If you make a call, they will schedule a special free pickup for old appliances, tires, furniture, carpets, mattresses, and electronic equipment --- and supposedly they recycle all that stuff if possible.

They also have programs to promote home composting. You can buy a Smith and Hawken Biostack composter for somthing like 30 bucks (usually over 100 at the store). Or you can get a Wriggly Wranch worm composter bin for under 30 (usually over 100). I've had the biostack for years, and just won a Wriggly Wranch. Just got my worms this week and started feeding them kitchen scraps.

It's a great system!

On garbage day, the regular small trash bin is usually less than half full, the big recycling bin is about 3/4 full, and the big green bin usually only has a few food items, soiled papers, or weeds (I compost the other stuff myself).