Trash & Recycling in Charleston County, SC (2026)
5 county-level rules, plus city-specific rules for 2 cities in Charleston County, South Carolina.
Verified from official government sources
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Charleston County Code Sec. 10-24 requires every owner of residential or commercial property in the unincorporated county to use a licensed or governmental solid waste collection service, or get county health department sign-off on a private disposal plan. Sec. 10-26 backs the mandate with fines of $100 to $500 per day of noncompliance.
Mandatory Trash Service in Charleston County
Some RestrictionsCharleston County Code §§ 10-24, 10-25, 10-26
Sec. 10-24. Every owner of residential or commercial property shall use an approved licensed or governmental agency solid waste collection service or submit individual plans for their proposed solid waste disposal facility which must conform to the intent of these solid waste disposal rules and regulations and be acceptable to the county health department. Sec. 10-25. Any variances to the provi...
Bin Placement Rules
Charleston County residents should set out the recycling roll cart by 7am on collection day (or the night before), keep it at least 3 feet from cars, mailboxes, and trees, with the cart handles facing the house.
Recycling and Trash Cart Placement Rules
Some RestrictionsCharleston County Code Sec. 10-28(b)
It shall be unlawful for any person to rummage through, remove, salvage items from or otherwise scavenge from or tamper with any solid waste container, whether located curbside or at designated drop-off or collection points... The scattering of any of the contents of any solid waste container is also prohibited.
Bulk Item Disposal
Oversized objects may not be dumped at Charleston County's resource recovery facility. Metal objects over 9 inches or non-metal items exceeding 2ft x 2ft x 5ft must be recycled or taken to a facility designated for oversized waste.
Bulk Items and Oversized Object Disposal
Some RestrictionsCharleston County Code Sec. 10-74
Oversized metal object means any single object, part of an object, or combination of objects affixed together, made of metal having a cross section which exceeds nine inches. Oversized nonmetal object means any single object... which exceed two feet times two feet times five feet... No oversized object shall be caused to be disposed of or dumped at the facility.
Illegal Dumping
Dumping or discarding litter or solid waste on public or private property in Charleston County is unlawful. Fines start at $100 to $200 plus mandatory litter-gathering community service, and rise to $500 for larger amounts.
Illegal Dumping and Littering Penalties
Some RestrictionsCharleston County Code Sec. 10-95(a)
No person shall dump, throw, drop, deposit, discard or otherwise dispose of litter or other solid waste upon any public or private property in the county or in the waters of the county whether from a vehicle or otherwise including, but not limited to, any highway, park, beach, campground, forest land, recreational area, trailer park, highway, road, street or alley.
Collection Schedule
Charleston County Code Sec. 10-21 sets the pickup floor for unincorporated areas: garbage collection at least twice a week in densely populated zones and household or yard rubbish at least once a week, with sparsely populated areas served on a county health department-approved schedule. Every licensed collector must hand customers a written collection schedule.
Trash Collection Schedule in Charleston County
Some RestrictionsCharleston County Code § 10-21(e)-(f)
Sec. 10-21. - Requirements for collection and transportation equipment. ... (e) The collection of solid waste from residential and commercial establishments shall be on the basis of a schedule approved by the county health department and shall include provision for pickup of discarded household furnishings and appliances. (f) A collection schedule will be furnished by the collector to all custo...
Trash & Recycling by City in Charleston County
2 cities in Charleston County have their own trash & recycling rules. Each link goes to that city's dedicated page with code citations.
All Charleston County ordinances
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