Trash & Recycling in Lakewood, CA (2026)
9 verified trash & recycling rules for Lakewood, California, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Lakewood requires residents to use only the City-issued wheeled carts for trash and recycling, keep them clean, and bundle greenwaste separately, under Municipal Code Section 5332's storage and accumulation standards.
Lakewood Rules for Trash, Recycling Carts
Some RestrictionsLakewood, CA, Municipal Code Sec. 5332 (Storage and Accumulation of Refuse)
All residential refuse must be placed in the wheeled cart provided by the City or the City's contractor for collection of household refuse. The cart is a commercially-manufactured refuse container made of recycled content materials and equipped with a hinged, insect-proof, tight-fitting lid or cover. No other container may be used as a container for solid waste. Except as expressly provided oth...
Bin Placement Rules
Lakewood requires wheeled trash and recycling carts to sit curbside with wheels behind the curb, and limits how long they can stay out: no earlier than 4 p.m. the day before pickup, and pulled back within 12 hours after being emptied, under Municipal Code Section 5336.
Lakewood Trash Cart Set-Out Time Rules
Light RestrictionsLakewood, CA, Municipal Code Sec. 5336(D) (Placement of Receptacles)
Such carts and containers shall be placed no earlier than 4 p.m. on the day immediately prior to the collection day and shall be removed to a storage location which is not visible from any public right-of-way, excluding alleys, no later than 12 hours after it has been emptied.
Bulk Item Disposal
Lakewood provides bulky-item disposal only through City-designated "Clean-Up" programs under Municipal Code Section 5335.2, covering discarded furniture, appliances, and plumbing or heating fixtures within the same weight and length limits that apply to regular refuse.
Lakewood Bulky Item Clean-Up Collection
Some RestrictionsLakewood, CA, Municipal Code Sec. 5335.2 (Special Cleanup)
The City shall provide, and the contractor shall provide to all places or premises within the City, the following additional disposal service during any "Clean-Up" program designated by the City Council, or the Director. Such disposal service may, in addition to the terms of refuse set forth in §5332, consist of discarded household furniture, furnishings, appliances, plumbing and heating fixtur...
Recycling Requirements
Lakewood requires every single-family household to automatically subscribe to the city's three-container curbside system under Municipal Code Section 5351: recyclables go in the Blue Container, food scraps and yard waste in the Green Container, trash in the Gray Container. Only carts the city's contractor supplies may be used, and mixing materials between containers is a violation the Public Works Director enforces, separate from the Sheriff's Department that handles Lakewood's contract-city policing.
Lakewood Curbside Recycling Rules
Some RestrictionsLakewood, CA, Municipal Code § 5351(A)
Single-Family Organic Waste Generators shall: 1. Automatically subscribe to the City's Organic Waste collection services for all Organic Waste generated as described below in Section 5351(A)(2)... 2. Participate in the City's three-container collection service(s) by placing Source Separated Green Container Organic Waste, including Food Waste, in the Green Container; Source Separated Recyclable ...
Illegal Dumping
Dumping refuse on someone else's property without consent, or on public property outside a designated dump, is banned by Municipal Code Section 5331 and prosecuted as a misdemeanor under the City's general penalty section.
Lakewood Illegal Dumping Penalties
Significant RestrictionsLakewood, CA, Municipal Code Sec. 5331 (Dumping of Refuse)
No person shall dump, unload or otherwise dispose of any refuse on another person's property without the consent of the owner thereof, or on public property other than in dumps designated for such purposes by the owner thereof.
Yard Waste Collection
Lakewood requires greenwaste to go in a resident-owned 20- to 40-gallon galvanized metal, heavy-duty plastic, or pressed-fiberboard container weighing no more than 50 pounds, per Municipal Code Section 5332. Cardboard boxes and plastic bags are banned as greenwaste containers. Branches and trimmings must be bundled to no more than 4 feet long, 1.5 feet in diameter, and 50 pounds, and set out no earlier than 4 p.m. the day before collection.
Lakewood Greenwaste & Yard Waste Rules
Some RestrictionsLakewood, CA, Municipal Code § 5332(A)(3)
3. Greenwaste Collection. a. Residential greenwaste is to be placed in commercially-manufactured refuse containers made of galvanized metal, heavy-duty plastic, or pressed fiberboard, of at least 20 gallon capacity, but not to exceed 40 gallon capacity, not exceeding 50 lbs. in weight, to be provided by the resident. b. No cardboard box, paper or plastic bag, or other similarly fragile containe...
Dumpster Rules
Lakewood requires every commercial, industrial and institutional property, plus apartment complexes of five or more units, to store dumpsters in a City-approved trash enclosure. Bins need at least three cubic yards of capacity for trash and recyclables, two for organics, and cannot sit in an alley or right-of-way without Public Works sign-off.
Lakewood Commercial Dumpster & Enclosure Rules
Some RestrictionsLakewood, CA, Municipal Code § 9920(B)(2)
Bin storage. Commercial, industrial, institutional, and all other land uses not authorized for cart storage are required to have trash bins (i.e., "dumpsters"). These are large, durable containers (e.g., heavy gauge steel) that are designed to be rolled out of a trash enclosure or internal room and be mechanically picked up by a collection vehicle. All property owners and occupants ... of any c...
Collection Schedule
Lakewood runs an exclusive, mandatory municipal refuse system: the City and its contractor are the only ones allowed to collect trash from any address, and every occupant must be served at least once a calendar week under Municipal Code Section 5335.
Lakewood Mandatory Weekly Trash Pickup
Some RestrictionsLakewood, CA, Municipal Code Sec. 5335 (Collection and Removal of Refuse by City)
The City shall provide for the collection and removal of refuse from all places or premises within the City. Every person occupying or having charge or control of any such place or premises where there is an accumulation of refuse shall cause the same to be placed for collection by the City at least once each calendar week in accordance with the terms and provisions of this Chapter.
Recycling Rules
Lakewood commercial businesses and multi-family properties must subscribe to the City's three-container collection service and sort waste into Green, Blue, and Gray containers under Municipal Code Section 5352. Businesses must post color-conforming, labeled containers in customer areas, train employees and tenants on sorting, and allow City inspectors and remote-monitoring equipment to check for contamination.
Lakewood Business Recycling Requirements
Some RestrictionsLakewood, CA, Municipal Code § 5352(A)(1)-(2)
A. Generators that are Commercial Businesses, including Multi-Family Residential Dwellings, shall: 1. Subscribe to the City's three-container collection services and comply with requirements of those services as described below in Section 5352(A)(2). The City shall have the right to review the number and size of a generator's containers and frequency of collection to evaluate adequacy of capaci...
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