Vegetable leftovers can be discarded in organic waste garbage cans. (Khylee Woodford/U.S. Army)

Beginning today, be sure to only dispose what belongs in your organic waste garbage can.

German authorities will be cracking down on the amount of waste that does not belong in the can, such as glass, stones, aluminum cans and plastics, which may not exceed 3% of the can’s volume. The plastic content may not be more than 1%.

If the amount is exceeded, the waste disposal company can refuse to empty the garbage can. This will result in additional costs, normally the price for picking up a can of residual waste. But authorities can levy fines up to 3,500 euros for offenders.

Some cities will be using new garbage trucks equipped with artificial intelligence-supported sensors to check the organic waste cans; others will still do it manually.

Other items that do not belong in the organic waste cans are animal excrement, cat litter, glass, ceramics, porcelain, hygiene products, medicine, textiles and vacuum cleaner bags.

Paper should be disposed in the paper recycling bin, but small amounts of newsprint can be used to layer or wrap the organic waste.