Trash & Recycling in Brookhaven, NY (2026)
7 verified trash & recycling rules for Brookhaven, New York, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Brookhaven bans solid or liquid waste collection before 6:00 a.m. or after 10:00 p.m. on any day. Garbage receptacles must be nonabsorbent, watertight, equipped with handles, and cap out at 32 gallons or 50 pounds, though sturdy sealed plastic bags and paper bags for grass and leaves also qualify.
Brookhaven Trash Collection Hours and Containers
Some RestrictionsBrookhaven Code §§ 45-9, 45-2
§ 45-9: It shall be unlawful for any person engaged in the business of collecting solid or liquid waste within the Town of Brookhaven to make such collection before 6:00 a.m. or after 10:00 p.m. of any day. § 45-2, AUTHORIZED PRIVATE RECEPTACLE: Receptacles used for storage of garbage shall, in addition thereto, be nonabsorbent, watertight and equipped with handles and shall not exceed 32 gallo...
Bin Placement Rules
Brookhaven residents on the curbside program must set recyclables at the side of the road fronting their residence on the Town's scheduled collection day, prepared the way the Commissioner directs; only authorized collectors may take them once set out.
Brookhaven Recycling Bin Placement Rules
Some RestrictionsBrookhaven Code § 46-5F
All residents of the Town within the areas serviced by the curbside programs established pursuant to this section shall, upon the applicable effective date, source separate newspaper and other designated recyclables and, in the manner designated by the Commissioner pursuant to § 46-6 of this chapter and on the date specified for collection by the schedule published by the Town, place them at th...
Recycling Requirements
Every commercial, industrial and institutional establishment in a serviced Brookhaven garbage district must source-separate newspaper, high-grade paper, cardboard, glass/plastic/cans and yard waste and arrange recycling collection within 180 days, under § 46-9 of the Recycling Law.
Brookhaven Mandatory Business Recycling Rule
Some RestrictionsBrookhaven Code § 46-9
All commercial, industrial and institutional establishments within a garbage district or an area of the Town subject to a curbside program established pursuant to § 46-5 of this chapter shall source separate and arrange for the collection for recycling of: newspaper within 180 days of the establishment of the curbside program and any and all other designated recyclables as may be included in or...
Illegal Dumping
Brookhaven makes it unlawful to dump garbage, hazardous waste, litter, rubbish or construction debris transported by dump truck onto any street, lot, park or public place, public or private. A first conviction under this dumping ban carries a fine of $2,000 to $10,000 and up to 15 days in jail; a second offense is prosecuted as a misdemeanor.
Brookhaven Illegal Dumping Ban and Penalties
Heavy RestrictionsBrookhaven Code § 45-4K(1)
It shall be unlawful for any person, his or her agent, employee or any person under his or her control to suffer or permit any garbage, hazardous waste, liquid waste, litter, rubbish, solid waste, construction or demolition debris, whether processed or not, or debris of any sort or any other organic or inorganic material or other offensive matter being transported in a dump truck or other vehic...
Yard Waste Collection
Brookhaven's Recycling Law treats vegetative yard waste, leaves, grass clippings and brush as a designated recyclable, but Chapter 46 does not force homeowners to bag it for pickup: § 46-10 expressly protects on-site composting, mulching or landscaping use instead.
Brookhaven Vegetative Yard Waste Rules
Light RestrictionsBrookhaven Code § 46-10
§ 46-10. Use of vegetative yard waste for certain purposes permitted. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as preventing any person from utilizing vegetative yard waste for compost, mulch or other agricultural, horticultural, silvicultural, gardening or landscaping purposes.
Dumpster Rules
Brookhaven forbids placing any part of a roll-off container or dumpster on public roads, within six feet of a public road, on a right-of-way, or on a sidewalk at any time. Every dumpster on private property must also sit inside an enclosure no more than eight feet high that conforms with the Town's Chapter 85 zoning rules.
Brookhaven Dumpster and Roll-Off Placement Rules
Some RestrictionsBrookhaven Code §§ 45-7.5A, 45-4I
§ 45-7.5A: Any point of any roll-off container or dumpster shall not be located upon public roads, within six feet from public roads, upon rights-of-ways or upon sidewalks at any time. § 45-4I: All dumpsters shall be fully enclosed by an enclosure of not more than eight feet in height and in conformance with Chapter 85 of the Town Code of the Town of Brookhaven.
Recycling Rules
Brookhaven runs a mandatory curbside recycling program inside its garbage districts under Town Code Chapter 46. Residents must source-separate newspaper and other designated recyclables and set them out weekly on the Town's published schedule; the Department of Recycling and Sustainable Materials Management enforces it.
Brookhaven Curbside Recycling Program Rules
Some RestrictionsBrookhaven Code § 46-5
Upon the effective date of this chapter, there is established within existing garbage districts in the Town a program ("curbside program") for separate collection of newspaper from all non-physically-disabled residents of the districts... Collection of newspaper pursuant to the curbside program established by this section shall be made once each week. Collection shall occur in accordance with a...
Looking for Suffolk County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Brookhaven city rules.
Trash & Recycling in Suffolk County →