Trash & Recycling in Pottstown, PA (2026)
9 verified trash & recycling rules for Pottstown, Pennsylvania, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Pottstown's noise ordinance, not its solid waste chapter, sets the actual pickup-hour limit: Section 803(2)(C) bars garbage and recycling trucks from collecting anywhere in the Borough before 6:00 a.m. or after 6:00 p.m. (9:00 a.m. on Sundays and holidays).
Pottstown Trash and Recycling Pickup Hours
Some RestrictionsPottstown Borough Code §§ 803(2)(C), 207
No garbage/recycling trucks shall be permitted to pick up trash/recycling material within the Borough between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. (9:00 a.m. on Sundays and national holidays). ... Guidelines establishing the manner, days and time of collection of recyclable materials, yard materials and leaf waste, and the bundling, handling, location and time of placement of such materials for...
Bin Placement Rules
Pottstown bars putting trash or garbage out for collection before 4:00 p.m. the night before the scheduled pickup, and every can or cart used for garbage or trash must be pulled back from the curb by 6:00 p.m. on pickup day. Section 113.6 of the Property Maintenance Code governs, and the Code Enforcement Officer can cite noncompliant properties.
Pottstown Trash Cart Set-Out and Removal Times
Some RestrictionsPottstown Borough Code Section 112.4 and Section 113.6 (Chapter 5, Part 3)
Section 112.4 Insert $100 and $1,000. ... Section 113.6. Trash Collection. No trash or garbage is to be set out for collection prior to 4:00 p.m. the night before the scheduled pickup. All receptacles for the collection of garbage and/or trash shall be removed from the curb of the various streets adjacent to the property where the trash/garbage is accumulated prior to 6:00 p.m. on the day of th...
Bulk Item Disposal
Pottstown collects bulk waste items through a Special Collection program the Borough Manager schedules under Section 220 of Chapter 20, run through the Borough's existing municipal waste hauling contract. There is no fixed citywide pickup day; the fee for each bulk item is set by Borough Council resolution and billed separately from the regular residential service charge.
Pottstown Bulk Waste Collection Rules
Some RestrictionsPottstown Borough Code Section 220(2), Chapter 20 (Solid Waste)
Special Collection. The Borough may, from time to time, and as the Borough Manager so designate, collect items of bulk waste. Bulk waste shall be collected in accordance with the existing municipal waste collection contract in effect at the time. The fee for collection and disposal of said bulk waste items shall be an amount as established from time to time by resolution of Borough Council.
Recycling Requirements
Section 208(1) of the Borough Code spells out how Pottstown residents, churches and mixed-use properties must handle recyclables: separate them from trash, store them for pickup, and use the 65-gallon container the Borough supplies for every dwelling unit.
Pottstown Curbside Recycling Requirements
Some RestrictionsPottstown Borough Code § 208(1), (1)(A), (1)(C)
All persons who are residents of the Borough (and do not live in a multifamily housing property), churches, and mixed use housing properties shall adhere to the following provisions concerning the separation and collection of recyclable materials: ... Each residence, church, and mixed use housing property shall separate recycling materials, yard materials, and leaf waste from all other municipa...
Illegal Dumping
Section 214 of the Borough Code flatly bans burying, burning or dumping municipal waste on any street, alley, public place or private property in Pottstown, and Section 222 lets the Borough clean up a violation itself and place the cost, plus a 10% penalty, as a lien on the property.
Pottstown Illegal Dumping Penalties
Heavy RestrictionsPottstown Borough Code §§ 214, 222
It shall be unlawful for any person to bury, burn, dump, collect, remove, or in any other manner dispose of municipal waste upon any street, alley, public place or private property within the Borough of Pottstown other than as provided in this Part. ... It shall be unlawful for any person to bury, burn or dump municipal waste, yard materials or leaf waste upon any street, alley or public place ...
Yard Waste Collection
Pottstown Borough Code Section 208(1)(B) requires every house, apartment and church to separate yard materials, prunings, leaves and other yard debris, from household trash unless the material is composted on-site. Separated yard waste must go out in biodegradable paper bags; plastic bags and grass clippings are refused at the curb.
Pottstown Yard Waste Separation Rules
Some RestrictionsPottstown Borough Code §§ 205, 208(1)(B)
YARD MATERIALS Prunings and other natural organic matter discarded from yards and gardens, including leaf waste, but not including grass clippings. ... All persons must separate yard materials from other municipal waste generated at their houses, apartments and other residential establishments and/or church facilities for collection, unless provision is made for composting such material. Separa...
Dumpster Rules
Commercial, industrial and larger multifamily properties in Pottstown cannot use residential can service; Section 213(2) requires a Borough Manager-approved dumpster sized for the property's waste volume and compliant with the Chapter 27 zoning standard for dumpster enclosures.
Pottstown Commercial Dumpster Requirements
Significant RestrictionsPottstown Borough Code § 213, Subsections (2) and (3)
Individual industrial properties, commercial properties, multifamily housing properties containing seven or more units, or mixed-use properties which include multifamily housing properties containing seven or more units, shall not be permitted to participate in the municipal collection system, but shall be required to comply with the following rules and regulations: ... The hauler shall provide...
Collection Schedule
Section 213 makes municipal waste collection mandatory for Pottstown residences, churches and mixed-use properties, caps what goes to the curb at four cans or bags per pickup, and Section 215 requires collection at least twice a week.
Pottstown Residential Trash Collection Rules
Some RestrictionsPottstown Borough Code §§ 213(1)(B), 215
In addition, each residential unit, mixed-use property, and church shall be limited as to the number of cans or bags that may be placed for collection on the designated collection day. The number of cans or bags shall be limited to four cans and/or bags at one collection time. Bulk items shall not be counted as part of the number of cans or bags. ... Except as otherwise approved by the Borough ...
Recycling Rules
Pottstown Borough Code Section 206 makes recycling mandatory, not optional, for every residence, church and mixed-use property that receives Borough waste collection. The Borough-run program covers recyclable materials, yard materials and leaf waste together, collected periodically by the Borough, its designated agent, or another licensed hauler under Chapter 20, Part 2 of the Borough Code.
Pottstown Mandatory Recycling Program
Some RestrictionsPottstown Borough Code §§ 206, 221
The Borough hereby establishes a recycling program for the mandatory separation and collection of recyclable materials, yard materials and leaf waste from all residences, churches and mixed use housing properties, in the Borough for which waste collection is provided by the Borough or any other collector. Collection of the materials to be recycled shall be made periodically by the Borough, its ...
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