Trash & Recycling in Davis, CA (2026)
9 verified trash & recycling rules for Davis, California, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Davis collects gray, green and split blue carts from individually serviced residences once a week under Municipal Code Section 32.01.070, with an assisted-service option for residents with disabilities. Commercial businesses instead follow a frequency schedule in Section 32.01.080 tied to how much putrescible waste they generate.
Davis Weekly Residential Waste Collection Service
Some RestrictionsDavis, CA, Municipal Code § 32.01.070
The frequency of collection service for individually serviced residences shall be once per week. ... The basic collection service to individually serviced residences shall be the collection of a green container, gray container, and split blue container, each container being a thirty- to one hundred-gallon cart or other size authorized by the city or city's contract hauler. ... Persons with a di...
Bin Placement Rules
Davis residents must set their gray, green and split blue carts in the gutter next to the curb, never on the sidewalk, and keep three feet between carts under Municipal Code Section 32.01.050(a). Carts cannot go out before 5:00 p.m. the day before collection and must be pulled back in by 7:00 a.m. the day after.
Davis Curbside Cart Placement and Set-Out Times
Some RestrictionsDavis, CA, Municipal Code § 32.01.050(a)
Acceptable containers for gray container waste, source separated green container waste, source separated dark blue container waste, and source separated non-organic recyclables, as specified in Section 32.01.040 from individually serviced residences shall be placed in the street gutter immediately adjacent to the curb, immediately adjacent to the generator's property, except as provided below, ...
Recycling Requirements
Every generator in Davis, from single-family homes to commercial businesses, must subscribe to the city's collection service for gray, green, dark blue and light blue containers under Municipal Code Section 32.01.020. The city can review container size and collection frequency and require customers to adjust service levels, and skipping the subscription requires a permit or waiver from the public works director.
Davis Mandatory Trash and Recycling Subscription
Some RestrictionsDavis, CA, Municipal Code § 32.01.020
In addition to the requirements in Sections 32.01.070 and 32.01.080, respectively, all generators shall subscribe to collection services for gray container waste, source separated green container organic waste, source separated dark blue container organic waste, source separated non-organic recyclables, cardboard collection services provided by the city or the city's contract hauler and comply ...
Mandatory Organics Recycling
Davis requires every customer to separate food scraps, food-soiled paper and yard waste into the green container and keep it out of the gray, dark blue and light blue containers under Municipal Code Section 32.01.065. The rule implements the state's SB 1383 organics mandate and applies to single-family homes and commercial businesses alike.
Davis Mandatory Organic Waste Source Separation
Some RestrictionsDavis, CA, Municipal Code § 32.01.065(a)(3)
All customers and generators shall not place prohibited contaminants in containers and shall source separate their solid waste consistent with the following requirements: ... (3) All customers and generators shall separate source separated green container organic waste from other solid waste generated on the property and shall not deposit source separated green container organic waste in the gr...
Illegal Dumping
Davis bans dumping refuse, garbage, or other discarded material anywhere it could reach the storm drain system, streets, or public and private land, under its stormwater discharge control chapter. A knowing violation is a misdemeanor carrying up to a thousand-dollar fine and six months in jail.
Davis Illegal Dumping Penalties
Significant RestrictionsDavis Municipal Code Section 30.02.090; Section 30.06.030
Except for pollutants lawfully disposed of in containers, or yard refuse properly disposed of as provided in Section 32.01.090 of the city's municipal code, no person shall throw, deposit, leave, maintain, keep, or permit to be thrown, deposited, placed, left, maintained or kept, any refuse, rubbish, garbage, or other discarded or abandoned objects, articles, and accumulations, in or upon any s...
Yard Waste Collection
Davis lets residents pile leaves and prunings up to five feet in each dimension in the street for uncontainerized pickup under Municipal Code Section 32.01.090, on a fixed fall and spring schedule, but bans piles in bike lanes and in several named downtown streets. Grass clippings and weeds must go in the green container instead.
Davis Yard Waste Piles and Pickup Schedule
Some RestrictionsDavis, CA, Municipal Code § 32.01.090(b)
(b) Yard waste piles authorized to be placed in the street. ... As authorized by this section, certain yard waste, as described in paragraph (2) of this subsection, may be placed or maintained in piles in the street immediately adjacent to the property from which they originated, for collection by the city or the city's contract hauler. Such piles shall not exceed five feet in width or five fee...
Dumpster Rules
Commercial dumpsters, bin-type containers and roll-off boxes in Davis must be structurally compatible with the contract hauler's collection equipment under Municipal Code Section 32.01.040(b)(3), and Section 32.01.050(b) requires that they sit somewhere easily accessible for the hauler and consistent with the property's zoning. Covered containers up to six cubic yards must stay lidded at all times.
Davis Commercial Roll-Off and Dumpster Placement
Some RestrictionsDavis, CA, Municipal Code §§ 32.01.040(b)(3), 32.01.050(b)
Special bulk-volume, drop-box or roll-off containers of sanitary design, adequate in capacity and structurally designed so as to be compatible with the collection equipment used for waste collection in the city. ... All other occupancies, including commercial businesses. Acceptable containers for gray container waste, source separated green container waste, source separated dark blue container ...
Collection Schedule
Every waste generator in Davis must subscribe to the city's gray, green, dark blue, and recycling container collection services unless they hold a permit or waiver to share service or self-haul. Unresolved violations climb from a hundred-dollar first fine to five hundred dollars.
Davis Mandatory Trash Collection Service
Significant RestrictionsDavis Municipal Code Section 32.01.020; Section 32.01.125
In addition to the requirements in Sections 32.01.070 and 32.01.080, respectively, all generators shall subscribe to collection services for gray container waste, source separated green container organic waste, source separated dark blue container organic waste, source separated non-organic recyclables, cardboard collection services provided by the city or the city's contract hauler and comply ...
Recycling Rules
Once recyclables and organics hit the curb or a commercial container in Davis, Municipal Code Section 32.01.060 makes them the property of the city or its contract hauler, and it is unlawful for anyone else to take them. Residents keep ownership of gray and green container waste and yard waste until the hauler actually collects it.
Davis Ownership of Curbside Recyclables
Some RestrictionsDavis, CA, Municipal Code § 32.01.060(c), (f)
Recyclable material, including source separated dark blue container organic waste and source separated non-organic recyclables placed in the dark blue side and light blue side, respectively, of a split blue container used by single-family generators placed at the curb shall become the property of the city or the city's contract hauler at the time of the placement at the curb. ... It is unlawful...
Looking for Yolo County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Davis city rules.
Trash & Recycling in Yolo County →