Trash & Recycling in Arvada, CO (2026)
9 verified trash & recycling rules for Arvada, Colorado, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Arvada requires every property owner, lessee or tenant to remove all waste, trash, rubbish and refuse from the premises at regular intervals and to store it between pickups in covered containers built to prevent the waste from escaping, under City Code § 90-3(a). Waste enclosures serving non-residential uses must also be screened or fully enclosed.
Arvada Trash Removal and Container Rules
Some RestrictionsArvada City Code § 90-3(a)
The owner, lessee, tenant or any other person having the right to possession of all or a portion of any premises shall provide for the removal of all waste, trash, rubbish, or refuse of all kinds from the premises at regular intervals. Between collections, the waste shall be stored in covered containers constructed in such a way as to prevent the escape of the waste.
Bin Placement Rules
Arvada limits when trash and recycling carts can sit at the curb: City Code § 90-31(c) requires containers to stay off the street, curb, sidewalk and other public ways except on the scheduled collection day, and even then only for a 12-hour window before and 12 hours after the set collection time.
Arvada Trash and Recycling Cart Placement Hours
Some RestrictionsArvada City Code § 90-31(c)
Waste and recycling containers shall be kept off the street, curb, sidewalk and all other public ways, except on the scheduled day of collection, and then only for a maximum of 12 hours before and 12 hours after the scheduled time of collection.(d)Hazardous waste as defined by federal or state law, rule or regulation is not subject to collection and must be properly disposed of by residents at ...
Bulk Item Disposal
Bulky items like furniture and appliances are not part of Arvada's routine cart service: § 90-33(d) requires residents to arrange bulky-item removal directly with the city's collection provider, another licensed hauler, or handle it themselves, and § 90-31(b) makes leaving bulky waste on a street or private lot unlawful unless that arrangement has been made.
Arvada Bulky Item Pickup Arrangements
Some RestrictionsArvada City Code § 90-33(d)
Bulky items, as defined by the city, shall be removed by private arrangement with the city's residential waste collection services provider or another licensed provider authorized to haul waste within the city, or by the resident. Neither the city, nor its designated residential waste collection service provider, or licensed operators, shall have any obligation to collect or transport any waste...
Recycling Requirements
Every hauler licensed to collect solid waste from Arvada residential customers must also offer curbside recycling to those same customers: City Code § 90-57(a) bars a trash-only service, and § 90-57(d)(1) requires recycling pickup at least twice a month, on the same day as trash collection.
Arvada Curbside Recycling Service Requirement
Some RestrictionsArvada City Code § 90-57(a), (d)(1)
All haulers providing solid waste collection services to residential customers must also provide curbside recycling collection services to every residential customer served, except to multi-family buildings with eight units or more. A solid waste collection only service, for residential customers, is not permitted. ... Curbside recycling collection services shall be provided to residential cust...
Illegal Dumping
Arvada makes it a prohibited nuisance to dump, throw, or place rubbish, trash, debris, or grass clippings anywhere in the city, public or private, and separately bans burying waste under dirt or sand to hide it, with violations punishable by fine or jail under Section 38-125.
Arvada Illegal Dumping Ban and Penalty
Heavy RestrictionsArvada City Code § 38-141(a)-(b)
(a)Dumping, throwing or placing any rubbish, cans, boxes, trash, debris, grass clippings or other waste materials on any private or public place in the city is hereby declared to be a nuisance and prohibited.(b)Disposal or storage of rubbish, cans, boxes, trash, debris, grass clippings or other waste materials on private or public property by covering such waste materials with earth, dirt, sand...
Yard Waste Collection
Arvada defines yard waste narrowly under City Code § 90-1 as grass, shrubbery cuttings, clippings and dry leaf rakings free of dirt and rocks, explicitly excluding large branches and bulky material. The city does not run weekly curbside yard-waste pickup; it instead funds periodic "Yard Waste Events" through the mandatory City Program fee billed to nearly every residential property under § 90-35.
Arvada Yard Waste Collection Rules
Light RestrictionsArvada City Code § 90-1
Yard waste means waste accumulation of lawn, grass or shrubbery cuttings, or clippings and dry leaf rakings free of dirt, rocks, large branches and bulky or noncombustible materials.
Dumpster Rules
Arvada's Land Development Code keeps trash dumpsters off single-family and duplex lots and requires every nonresidential, mixed-use, or multifamily site to set its compactor or dumpster enclosure at least 20 feet from homes and streets. Section 5-1-6-5 also caps the screening wall at six to eight feet and bars chain-link gates with metal cladding.
Arvada Commercial Dumpster Placement Rules
Some RestrictionsArvada Land Development Code Section 5-1-6-5.A-C, Trash Collection and Compaction
5-1-6-5. - Trash collection and compaction. A.Generally. Nonresidential, mixed-use, multifamily, and clustered small housing development shall include a designated trash collection and/or compaction area... Trash collection dumpsters shall not be allowed on individual single-family or duplex lots, unless on a temporary basis associated with construction projects for which a building permit has ...
Collection Schedule
Arvada runs a mandatory residential collection program: under § 90-33, the city's designated hauler must provide waste and recycling service to every resident not specifically excluded, containers are supplied by the city or its provider, and residents place carts in the street or alley on the schedule the city sets.
Arvada Residential Trash Collection Service Rules
Some RestrictionsArvada City Code § 90-33(a)-(c)
(a) The city's designated residential waste collection service provider shall furnish residential waste collection services as provided in this chapter for all residents within the city, except those specifically excluded in section 90-37 below. (b) Waste and recycling containers shall be provided by the city, or the city's designated residential waste collection service provider. (c) All waste...
Recycling Rules
Arvada controls what actually counts as recyclable: under § 90-58, the city manager sets and periodically updates the official list of designated recyclable items after consulting licensed haulers and regional processors, and haulers must tell customers at least once a year what belongs in the recycling cart and how to prepare it.
Arvada Recyclable Materials Designation Rules
Some RestrictionsArvada City Code § 90-58(a), (c)
The city manager shall, periodically, after consultation with representatives of the licensed haulers operating within the city and representatives from recycling processing facilities in the region determine which items shall be designated for recycling collection. The list of designated recyclables shall be kept on file for public inspection in the city clerk's Office.(b)If market factors or ...
Looking for Jefferson County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Arvada city rules.
Trash & Recycling in Jefferson County →