Trash & Recycling in Laredo, TX (2026)
9 verified trash & recycling rules for Laredo, Texas, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Residential garbage is collected on your assigned weekday; find your zone and days by entering your address at LaredoRoutes. Set carts out by 7 a.m., and check the City's holiday schedule since pickups shift on holidays.
Laredo Trash Pickup Schedule & Rules
Light RestrictionsTexas Health and Safety Code Sec. 365.012 (Illegal Dumping; Criminal Penalties)
Sec. 365.012. ILLEGAL DUMPING; DISCARDING LIGHTED MATERIALS; CRIMINAL PENALTIES. (a) A person commits an offense if the person disposes or allows or permits the disposal of litter or other solid waste at a place that is not an approved solid waste site, including a place on or within 300 feet of a public highway, on a right-of-way, on other public or private property, or into inland or coastal ...
Bin Placement Rules
Laredo restricts when residential carts can hit the curb: Sec. 14-3(i)(3) bars setting refuse and recycling carts out any earlier than 7:00 p.m. the night before collection and requires empty carts pulled back in by 7:00 p.m. on collection day. Carts go immediately behind the curb or at the lot line as the director of solid waste directs.
Laredo Garbage Cart Set-Out Time Window
Some RestrictionsLaredo Code of Ordinances Sec. 14-3(i)(3)
Collection services. All refuse and recyclables collection carts at single-family dwellings, multifamily dwellings, or business units comprised of two (2) or less units shall be picked up at curbside, unless otherwise authorized by the director of solid waste. The refuse and recyclables collection carts shall be placed in a manner readily accessible for collection immediately behind the curb at...
Bulk Item Disposal
Laredo offers scheduled bulky waste pickup for items that do not fit in the regular cart. Residents must call to arrange collection. Brush and bulky items are collected on separate routes with size and material limits.
Trash Recycling: Bulk Disposal
Light RestrictionsTex. Health & Safety Code Sec. 365.012 (Illegal Dumping; Criminal Penalties)
Sec. 365.012. ILLEGAL DUMPING; DISCARDING LIGHTED MATERIALS; CRIMINAL PENALTIES. (a) A person commits an offense if the person disposes or allows or permits the disposal of litter or other solid waste at a place that is not an approved solid waste site, including a place on or within 300 feet of a public highway, on a right-of-way, on other public or private property, or into inland or coast...
Recycling Requirements
Laredo charges every individual residence a monthly recycling program mandate fee of $4.25 on top of the garbage bill under Sec. 14-9(a), and Sec. 14-3(i)(1) requires all recyclables to go in city-owned collection carts. The fee funds the solid waste department's recycling operation and applies per residential unit, even inside multifamily buildings.
Laredo Mandatory Recycling Program Fee
Some RestrictionsLaredo Code of Ordinances Sec. 14-9(a) and Sec. 14-3(i)(1)
In addition to this minimum collection fee, a monthly state and federal recycling program mandate fee of four dollars and twenty-five cents ($4.25) will be charged to individual residences inside the city limits and will be charged on the monthly water utility bill from the city utilities department to the building or premises on which the individual residence or residences, if more than one (1...
Illegal Dumping
Dumping trash, rubbish, or solid waste on any public or private land in Laredo is unlawful under City Code Article VI. Conviction is a misdemeanor carrying a fine of $500 to $4,000 per violation, with each day counted as a separate offense.
Laredo Illegal Dumping: Fines up to $4,000 (City Code)
Significant RestrictionsLaredo, TX Code of Ordinances §§ 33-433, 33-454 (Ch. 33, Art. VI — Illegal Dumping)
Sec. 33-433(a): It shall be unlawful for any person to cause, permit, maintain or to allow someone to dump any material such as trash, rubbish, solid waste or any other materials that may reduce property values or obstruct the natural flow of water within the city. Sec. 33-454(a): ...any person who shall violate any provision of this article shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and shall, up...
Yard Waste Collection
Laredo defines yard waste as grass clippings, weeds, leaves, mulch, and small limbs three inches or less in diameter under Sec. 14-1, and city residents can drop clean yard waste at the landfill for free. Commercial haulers pay $16.50 per ton, and the brush and bulky item pickup service hauls larger yard debris for a $35 minimum charge, waived for residents current on garbage fees.
Laredo Yard Waste Collection and Landfill Fees
Some RestrictionsLaredo Code of Ordinances Sec. 14-1 and Sec. 14-9(h)(1)d
Yard waste. Grass clippings, weeds, leaves, mulch, small trees and shrub limbs, which are three (3) inches or less in diameter and five (5) feet or less in length, that results from landscaping maintenance. The term does not include stumps, roots, or shrubs with intact root balls. ... d.Passenger cars, pickups and trailers used by city residents transporting yard waste that is free of rubbish, ...
Dumpster Rules
Multifamily and commercial dumpsters in Laredo must sit within 30 feet of any residential structure they don't serve and never closer than 10 feet to a property line abutting a single-family home, per Sec. 14-3(b)(6). New multifamily construction must also enclose the dumpster in a screened enclosure at least as tall as the container itself under Sec. 14-3(b)(7).
Laredo Commercial Dumpster Placement and Screening
Some RestrictionsLaredo Code of Ordinances Sec. 14-3(b)(6)
Any dumpster used for storage and removal of accumulations of garbage from other than single-family homes shall be so located as to be within thirty (30) feet of any portion of a structure used as a residence by one (1) or more persons other than the premises being served. In no event shall the container be located less than ten (10) feet from the property line if the abutting property has a si...
Collection Schedule
Laredo collects residential garbage and recycling at least twice weekly, one garbage pickup and one recycling pickup, using city-owned carts set out at the curb. Residents find their specific day and route by address through the city's Solid Waste Services Department.
Laredo Trash Collection: Twice-Weekly Pickup, City Carts Required
Some RestrictionsLaredo Code of Ordinances § 14-3(a), (i)(3)
The city shall have as its minimum objective the collection from the residential areas of the city not less than twice weekly, one (1) collection of garbage and one (1) collection of recyclables... The refuse and recyclables collection carts shall be placed... immediately behind the curb at the street or at the lot line... no earlier than 7:00 p.m. on the day preceding the day on which collecti...
Recycling Rules
Laredo's recycling carts are limited to clean plastic, paper, cardboard, and metal under Sec. 14-1, and Sec. 14-2(k) backs that up with enforcement teeth: carts set out with regular garbage, yard clippings, plastic bags, or glass mixed in simply won't be picked up, and repeat contamination can get a resident's blue cart pulled and canceled from the program entirely.
Laredo Recycling Cart Contamination Rules
Some RestrictionsLaredo Code of Ordinances Sec. 14-1 and Sec. 14-2(k)
Recyclables. Material capable of being recycled in the city's material recovery facility and sold as a commodity. This consists of clean plastic, paper, cardboard and metals. ... Recyclables shall be placed in the recycling carts provided by the solid waste department clearly identified with the recycling information printed on the lid. Recycling carts which are set out for collection but conta...