Trash & Recycling in Dearborn, MI (2026)
8 verified trash & recycling rules for Dearborn, Michigan, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Dearborn requires every household on city refuse service to use the city-issued 96- or 64-gallon cart; loose bags left outside the cart are not collected. Overflow trash needs a covered 32-gallon container, and repeated overflow within three months means leasing an extra cart at cost, all enforced with warnings then $100/$300 civil fines.
Dearborn Domestic Refuse Cart Pickup Rules
Some RestrictionsDearborn Code of Ordinances § 16-5(2)
(2) Domestic refuse carts. Each owner, occupant, tenant or lessee receiving domestic refuse collection service shall utilize the 96-gallon or 64-gallon refuse cart provided by the city. Disposable paper or plastic bags containing refuse placed outside of the carts provided by the city will not be picked up. Occasionally, if necessary, each owner, occupant, tenant or lessee may put additional ba...
Bin Placement Rules
Dearborn residents may not set refuse or recycling carts at the curb before 5 p.m. the day ahead of pickup, must have them out by 7 a.m. on collection day, and must pull carts back in by midnight.
Dearborn Trash Cart Set-Out Times
Some RestrictionsDearborn Code of Ordinances § 16-6(a)
No refuse or recycle carts shall be placed in the public street. Such containers shall be placed at that location prior to 7:00 a.m. on the day scheduled for collection from the premises but in no case shall any containers be placed on the easement or edge of the alley, as the case may be, prior to 5:00 p.m. of the day preceding the scheduled collection day. Containers must be removed from the ...
Bulk Item Disposal
Dearborn residents can set out up to five bulk items, furniture, appliances, mattresses, at the curb each week for free pickup, separate from the standard refuse cart service.
Dearborn Bulk Item Curbside Limit
Some RestrictionsDearborn Code of Ordinances § 16-5(1)
Separate and apart from the refuse cart program, it is the intent of the city to continue curbside service of bulk waste removal. As part of this service, every owner, occupant, tenant or lessee using any building, house or structure may place up to five bulk items (e.g. chair, refrigerator) per week at the curbside for removal. (2) Domestic refuse carts. Each owner, occupant, tenant or...
Recycling Requirements
Dearborn requires every owner, lessee or occupant to separate recyclables from trash and use the city recycle cart, and once materials are set at the curb they become city property that only the city or its licensed hauler may collect.
Dearborn Mandatory Recycling Rules
Some RestrictionsDearborn Code of Ordinances § 16-7(a)
Mandatory recycling. All persons who are owners, lessees or occupants of any site of generation shall separate recyclable materials, excluding yard waste, from solid waste and place them in the recycle cart. (b) Mandatory composting. All persons who are owners, lessees, or occupants of any site of generation shall separate yard waste from solid waste and place the yard waste for pickup on ...
Illegal Dumping
Dumping bottles, cans, junk, old cars, or other refuse on Dearborn streets, alleys, or public land is unlawful, and police can seize and impound the vehicle used to commit the violation.
Dearborn Illegal Dumping Penalties
Heavy RestrictionsDearborn Code of Ordinances § 16-15
It shall be unlawful for any person to throw, dump or deposit... any bottles, glass, crockery, cans, scrap metal, junk, waste paper, garbage, old automobiles, or parts thereof... on or along any public highways, streets, alleys or public places... Any person violating this section shall be deemed to have committed a nuisance, and the motor vehicle... used in committing such nuisance shall be se...
Yard Waste Collection
Dearborn residents must set yard waste at the curb in 32-gallon containers bearing a city sticker, or in approved paper compost bags.
Dearborn Yard Waste Collection Rules
Some RestrictionsDearborn Code of Ordinances § 16-5(1)
Yard waste will be collected as part of the curbside service of waste removal. Yard waste shall be placed in 32-gallon waste containers provided and maintained by the owner, occupant, tenant or lessee, or placed in approved paper compost bags. Individuals placing yard waste in 32-gallon containers shall place the city "yard waste" sticker on the container. Separate and apart from the refuse ...
Dumpster Rules
Dearborn bans storing dumpsters and portable storage containers on private property by default, allowing them only under strict placement, labeling, and time limits: one container per lot for up to seven cumulative days in 180.
Dearborn Dumpster and Storage Container Rules
Significant RestrictionsDearborn Code of Ordinances § 11-242
Dumpsters and temporary storage containers are allowed on private property with the following limitations:...(3) Dumpsters and temporary storage containers shall not extend into the front set back....(6) Only one dumpster or temporary storage container is allowed on a property at one time. (7) Dumpsters and temporary storage containers are allowed on a property for a period of an accumulative s...
Collection Schedule
Dearborn requires every household to use the city's Department of Public Works or its licensed contractor for solid waste and recyclable material collection: no private disposal outside this system is allowed.
Dearborn Mandatory Trash Collection Service
Heavy RestrictionsDearborn Code of Ordinances § 16-9(a)
All domestic solid waste and recyclable materials complying with the terms and conditions provided for herein will be collected by the department of public works or the contractor hired by the city to collect, process and dispose of solid waste and recyclable materials; provided, however, that the city shall not be responsible for damage to receptacles. (b) The department of public works m...
Looking for Wayne County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Dearborn city rules.
Trash & Recycling in Wayne County →