How Cherry Hill Handles Trash & Recycling: A Practical Guide
Cherry Hill maintains 93 local ordinances across all categories, and 10 of those deal specifically with trash & recycling. Here is a breakdown of what the city actually requires, what is prohibited, and where Cherry Hill falls on the strict-to-permissive spectrum compared to other cities.
Bulk Item Disposal
Cherry Hill Township collects bulk items like furniture and mattresses on residents' regular weekly collection day under Section 19-2.10, but tied bundles of lumber, carpet or construction material must weigh under 50 pounds and run no more than 4 feet, and construction debris or house-cleanout items are excluded outright.
Key details: Weight limit: under 50 lbs per bundle. Length limit: 4 feet maximum. Contractor construction debris: never accepted. House-cleanout items: not collected. Bulk pickup day: resident's normal weekly day.
Under Section 19-2.20 the Department of Public Works or Property Maintenance Division may warn, issue a summons, or simply refuse pickup of noncompliant bulk items. Where no specific penalty is provided, Section 1-5.1 sets the Township-wide maximum at a $2,000 fine, 90 days' imprisonment, or 90 days' community service, and Section 1-5.5 treats each day of a continuing violation as a separate offense.
Yard Waste Collection
Cherry Hill Township limits when loose leaves, grass clippings and brush can go curbside: only within the seven days before a scheduled pickup, and never closer than ten feet to a storm drain. Bagging yard waste in plastic is banned outright, and municipal leaf collection itself runs only in November and December.
Key details: Curbside window: 7 days before scheduled pickup. Leaf-specific window: 14 days before Nov/Dec pickup. Keep-back distance: 10 feet from storm drain inlets. Weight limit: 50 pounds per bag or bundle. Plastic bags: prohibited for yard waste.
Placing yard waste at the curb outside the allowed window, within ten feet of a storm drain, or bagged in plastic violates §§ 17-6.3 and 19-2.9c. Enforcement runs through the Cherry Hill Police Department and the Community Development Department's Property Maintenance Division, with a fine of up to $500.00, and the responsible party must remove any improperly placed material from the street.
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Cherry Hill Township collects residential solid waste and recyclables once a week, and containers may only go out between 5:30 p.m. the evening before pickup and 7:00 a.m. on collection day. Empty containers must come back in within twelve hours of pickup, and each address gets only one collection point.
Key details: Collection frequency: solid waste and recycling weekly. Set-out window: 5:30 p.m. night before to 7 a.m.. Container removal: within 12 hours after pickup. Placement: within 3 feet of curb, handles facing house. Collection points: one per residential address.
Putting mixed or improperly separated solid waste and recyclables out violates § 19-2.6a; under § 19-2.6b the Township may educate, warn, or issue a summons, or its contractor may simply decline to collect improperly separated materials. Setting containers out earlier than 5:30 p.m. the night before pickup, contrary to § 19-2.5d, is likewise a violation of the collection program.
Dumpster Rules
Cherry Hill Township requires every dumpster, trash can and other outdoor refuse container to stay covered at all times so nothing spills or leaks into the township's storm sewer system. Township Code § 19-4 exempts individual homeowner containers and temporary demolition boxes, and violators face a fine up to $500 enforced by the Property Maintenance Division.
Key details: Governing section: § 19-4, Stormwater Management; Refuse Containers/Dumpsters. Covering duty: Covered at all times, no spilling. Max fine: $500 per violation (§ 19-4.6). Enforcing agency: Property Maintenance Division. Exempt: Homeowner containers, NJPDES facilities, curbside bulky items.
A property owner, tenant or hauler who leaves a dumpster uncovered or lets it leak into a storm drain is cited by the Property Maintenance Division under § 19-4.6 and faces a fine up to $500 per violation. The Township treats each container and each day it remains uncovered after a violation notice as a separate, chargeable offense.
Recycling Requirements
Cherry Hill Township requires every resident served by its collection program to separate newspaper, glass, metal and aluminum cans, plastics, e-waste and yard waste from solid waste under Section 19-2.6, backed by warnings, summonses, or refused pickup for mixed loads.
Key details: Separated materials: newspaper, glass, metal/aluminum, plastics, yard waste. E-waste separation required: since Jan. 1, 2011. Commercial separation enforced by: Camden County. Noncompliance remedy: pickup refusal or summons. Max general fine: $2,000 (Section 1-5.1).
A resident who mixes recyclables or yard waste with trash risks having both containers left uncollected under Section 19-2.6(b), plus a discretionary warning or summons. Where the Township pursues a summons and no more specific fine applies, Section 1-5.1's general penalty controls: up to a $2,000 fine, 90 days' imprisonment, or 90 days' community service, with each day a separate offense under Section 1-5.5.
Holiday Pickup Schedule
Cherry Hill Township suspends residential trash and recycling collection on six named holidays each year under Section 19-2.5(a): New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.
Key details: Closed day: New Year's Day. Closed day: Memorial Day. Closed day: Independence Day. Closed day: Labor Day. Closed day: Thanksgiving Day.
There is no separate holiday-specific penalty. A resident who sets carts out despite a listed holiday closure, or otherwise violates cart placement timing under Section 19-2.5, is subject to the general Chapter 19 enforcement in Section 19-2.20 (education, warning or summons by the Department of Public Works) and the Township-wide default fine of up to $2,000 under Section 1-5.1.
The rules around holiday pickup schedule in Cherry Hill lean permissive, but that does not mean anything goes.
Collection Schedule
Cherry Hill Township provides automated weekly collection of residential solid waste and recyclables under a Township contract, with the Mayor or a designee setting and adjusting the schedule under Section 19-2.5. Both streams go out once a week.
Key details: Collection frequency: once per week, each stream. Earliest set-out: 5:30 p.m. prior evening. Latest set-out: 7:00 a.m. collection day. Empty carts removed: within 12 hours. Cart weight rating: 335 lbs.
Chapter 19 is enforced by the Department of Public Works, the Division of Solid Waste and Recycling/Recycling Coordinator, and the Property Maintenance Division under Section 19-2.20, which allows education, a warning, or a summons at the Township's discretion. Where no specific fine applies, Section 1-5.1 caps penalties at a $2,000 fine, 90 days' imprisonment, or 90 days' community service.
Bin Placement Rules
Cherry Hill Township requires collection carts placed within 3 feet of the curb with handles facing the house, limits residences to one collection point, and requires stored carts to sit behind the front of the house, screened from public view, under Sections 19-2.7 and 19-2.12.
Key details: Curb placement: within 3 feet of curb. Clearance from obstructions: 3 feet minimum. Collection points per home: one only. Storage requirement: behind front face, screened. Set-out window: 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 a.m..
Chapter 19 is enforced by the Department of Public Works, the Recycling Coordinator, and the Property Maintenance Division under Section 19-2.20, which allows a warning, notice or summons at the Township's discretion for a misplaced or unscreened cart. Absent a specific fine, Section 1-5.1's general penalty applies: up to a $2,000 fine, 90 days' imprisonment, or 90 days' community service.
Recycling Rules
Cherry Hill Township requires recyclables loaded loose into its single-stream cart, bans plastic bags in that cart, and directs tires, batteries, CFLs, electronics and plastic shopping bags to the Public Works drop-off instead of curbside, under Section 19-2.9.
Key details: Single-stream cart sizes: 96, 64 or 25 gallon. Cardboard and bags must be: flattened. Plastic bags in recycling: prohibited. Excluded items: tires, batteries, CFLs, electronics. White goods pickup: DPW appointment only.
Mixing prohibited items such as electronics or plastic bags into the recycling cart, or setting out loose recyclables, is enforced under Section 19-2.20 by the Department of Public Works and the Recycling Coordinator through education, a warning, or a summons, or by simply leaving the container uncollected. The Township-wide default under Section 1-5.1 caps a summons at a $2,000 fine or 90 days.
Illegal Dumping
Cherry Hill Township bans depositing dirt, garbage, rubbish or debris on any street or land Township-wide, requires same-day removal by 6 p.m. if it happens anyway, and enforces the ban through Chapter 1's general penalty, under Section 20-3.
Key details: Prohibited: dumping dirt, garbage, rubbish, debris. Applies to: any street or land Township-wide. Cleanup deadline: by 6:00 p.m. same day. Max fine: $2,000 (Section 1-5.1). Max jail/community service: 90 days.
A conviction under Section 20-3 carries mandatory removal of the dumped material plus the Chapter 1 general penalty: up to a $2,000 fine, 90 days' imprisonment, or 90 days' community service under Section 1-5.1, with each day the material remains constituting a separate offense under Section 1-5.5. The Municipal Court sets the actual sentence within that range.
This is not one of those rules that cities tend to ignore. Cherry Hill actively enforces its illegal dumping requirements.
The Bottom Line
Cherry Hill's trash & recycling rules are a mixed bag. Some areas are strict, others are relaxed, and the details matter. The best approach is to check the specific rule that applies to your situation rather than assuming Cherry Hill is broadly strict or permissive.
These rules come from Cherry Hill's publicly available municipal code. For complete penalty schedules, exemption details, and answers to common questions, see the individual ordinance pages throughout this guide.