Trash & Recycling in Portland, ME (2026)
8 verified trash & recycling rules for Portland, Maine, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Portland's municipal collection won't take certain wastes at the curb at all: hazardous, infectious and hospital waste, flammable liquids, pesticides, paint, construction debris, asbestos, lab chemicals, plated metal, transformers and hot ashes are all barred from street pickup under Chapter 12. Public works can also refuse any container that's unsafe, overloaded or the wrong type, tagging it for correction before it's picked up.
Portland Rules On What Trash Gets Picked Up
Some RestrictionsPortland Code of Ordinances § 12-22
No person shall place any of the following wastes on the street for municipal collection: (a) Hazardous waste: All hazardous waste as defined by federal and state regulatory agencies; ... (i) Construction and demolition debris as defined in section 12-101 of this Code; ... (k) Special waste as defined by state law, including, but not limited to, asbestos; ... (p) Hot ashes. (q) Discarded goods.
Bin Placement Rules
Portland's Code of Ordinances makes every property owner or occupant responsible for on-site waste containers. One- and two-family tenants must supply their own; owners of larger residential buildings, hotels, restaurants and stores share the same duty. Containers must stay clean and cannot be removed, destroyed or repurposed. Waste and recyclables must stay inside them between collections, not piled around the property.
Portland Trash & Recycling Container Duty
Some RestrictionsPortland Code of Ordinances § 12-18(a)
(a) It shall be the duty of every tenant, lessee or occupant of every residential property occupied by not more than two (2) families to provide and keep within the building or upon the lot where the building is situated suitable and sufficient containers to receive the accumulation of solid waste on the premises during the interval between collections.
Bulk Item Disposal
Portland collects bulky waste, mattresses, couches, appliances and other oversized items, only under Sec. 12-17.2's tag program run by the Department of Public Works. Large items over 30 pounds need a $60.00 tag while small bulky items go out free, and skipping the rules draws a flat $200 fine plus disposal costs.
Portland Bulky Waste Collection & Tag Fees
Some RestrictionsPortland Code of Ordinances § 12-17.2
(a) Bulky Waste shall be collected by the city as prescribed by the rules and regulations for said program established by the Department of Public Works. (b) No person shall place bulky waste out for collection by the city unless it is in compliance with the rules and regulations as established by the Department of Public Works for the bulky waste collection program... (d) Whoever violates this...
Recycling Requirements
Any Portland residential property that doesn't use the city's trash and recycling pickup must run its own recycling program under Sec. 12-17.1, single-stream, at least as convenient as the city's, clearly signed, and disclosed to residents, or face enforcement by the Department of Public Works, including uniform summons penalties.
Portland Mandatory Residential Recycling Program
Significant RestrictionsPortland Code of Ordinances § 12-17.1
(a) Any residential property which does not participate in city solid waste collection and recycling under section 12-17 above, must provide a recycling program for all of its residential dwelling units, either directly by doing such collection itself under a city license as a waste transporter, or by contracting with a licensed waste hauler... Such recycling program must meet the following min...
Illegal Dumping
Throwing or dumping garbage, tobacco waste, yard waste or any other waste matter on a Portland street, sidewalk, park, vacant lot or waterway is a flat-out violation of Chapter 12, punishable by a $200 fine plus attorney's fees, costs and the cost of properly disposing of what was dumped. Using a city litter basket to unload large volumes of trash is banned the same way.
Portland Illegal Dumping Penalty, $200 Fine
Heavy RestrictionsPortland Code of Ordinances § 12-23
(a) No person shall throw or deposit any garbage, or tobacco product, or yard waste, solid waste, prohibited waste, or waste matter, or cause the same to be thrown or deposited upon any street, sidewalk, alley, gutter, park, or other public way, or throw or deposit the same in or upon any premises or vacant lot or in any water, or to store or keep the same except in suitable containers as requi...
Yard Waste Collection
Portland requires yard waste, leaves, grass and garden waste under Sec. 12-16, to go out in a biodegradable plastic bag designated by the Department of Public Works, not a regular trash bag; dumping it loose in a street, sidewalk or public way under Sec. 12-23 draws a flat $200 fine plus disposal costs.
Portland Yard Waste Container Requirement
Some RestrictionsPortland Code of Ordinances §§ 12-16, 12-23
Yard Waste shall mean waste material consisting of leaves, grass or garden waste. ... Suitable yard waste containers for yard waste material shall mean a biodegradable plastic bag as designated by the public works authority. ... (a) No person shall throw or deposit any garbage, or tobacco product, or yard waste, solid waste, prohibited waste, or waste matter, or cause the same to be thrown or d...
Collection Schedule
Portland residents may not set solid waste or recycling containers at the curb until 3:00 p.m. the day before their scheduled pickup under Sec. 12-21(a), and empties must come back off the curb by 8:00 p.m. on collection day; standard collection itself is limited to residential properties under Sec. 12-17.
Portland Curbside Trash Placement Times
Some RestrictionsPortland Code of Ordinances §§ 12-17, 12-21
Solid waste and recyclable material will be collected by the city from all residential properties. ... Solid waste and recyclable material shall not be collected by the city from any commercial property except as provided in subparagraph (d) below. ... (a) Municipal collection. Suitable containers for collection shall be placed at the curb or on the esplanade between the sidewalk and the gutter...
Recycling Rules
Portland requires recyclables to go in the lidded rolling carts or drop-off bins the city designates under Sec. 12-19.1, and bars putting any trash, garbage or other waste in or around those recycling containers; a violation carries double the standard Sec. 12-30 penalty plus attorney's fees and disposal costs.
Portland Recycling Container Contamination Ban
Some RestrictionsPortland Code of Ordinances § 12-19.1
(a) Recyclable material shall be placed in a suitable recycling container. No person shall place or cause to be placed in or around any suitable recyclable container any solid waste, garbage or waste matter of any kind. (b) The notice provisions of Section 12-27 and 12-28 of this Article shall not apply to violations of this Section. (c) Whoever violates this Section of this Article shall be gu...