Trash & Recycling in Lee County, NC (2026)
8 rules for unincorporated Lee County, North Carolina.
Verified from official government sources
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Because unincorporated Lee County residents drop waste off rather than set it at a curb, the rules governing pickup center on container standards and facility procedure: garbage must sit in a durable, rust-resistant, flytight container, and only an attendant may accept and unload it at a county facility.
Waste Container & Drop-off Rules, Lee County
Some RestrictionsLee County Code §§ 22-16, 22-38, 22-39
Garbage shall be stored only in a container that is durable, rust resistant, nonabsorbent, watertight and easily cleaned, with a close-fitted, flytight cover in place, with adequate handles or bails to facilitate handling. The number of containers shall be adequate to store one week's accumulation of garbage. ... The sites of each solid waste collection facility shall be attended by employees o...
Bin Placement Rules
In unincorporated Lee County, garbage must be kept in a durable, rust-resistant, watertight container with a close-fitted, flytight cover under Sec. 22-16, and refuse must be stored so it will not harbor rodents or create a fire hazard under Sec. 22-17. Bulky waste cannot sit outside a home longer than 72 hours under Sec. 22-18.
Lee County Garbage Container & Storage Rules
Some RestrictionsLee County Code §§ 22-16, 22-17, 22-18
Sec. 22-16. - Containers. Garbage shall be stored only in a container that is durable, rust resistant, nonabsorbent, watertight and easily cleaned, with a close-fitted, flytight cover in place, with adequate handles or bails to facilitate handling. The number of containers shall be adequate to store one week's accumulation of garbage. Each container shall be kept clean so that no odor or other ...
Bulk Item Disposal
In unincorporated Lee County, bulky items like furniture and large auto parts can't sit outside a home longer than 72 hours unless a licensed junk dealer owns them. Residents with a decal may also haul one large load, capped at 120 cubic feet, to a county convenience center every seven days.
Bulk Waste Rules in Lee County
Some RestrictionsLee County Code §§ 22-3, 22-18, 22-33
Bulky waste means large items of solid waste such including but not necessarily limited to furniture, large auto parts, trees, branches, stumps and other oversized wastes whose large size precludes or complicates their handling by normal solid waste collection, processing or disposal methods. ... No owner, occupant, tenant or lessee of a ... building or dwelling, other than a licensed junk deal...
Recycling Requirements
Lee County encourages, but does not mandate, separating recyclables from trash. The director of general services designates which materials count as recyclable, and once material is placed in a county collection container it becomes county property that only the county or its agent may remove.
Recycling Rules in Unincorporated Lee County
Light RestrictionsLee County Code §§ 22-51, 22-52, 22-53
All persons generating solid waste on any residential, commercial, industrial or institutional premises within the territorial jurisdiction of this chapter are encouraged to separate recyclable material from said solid waste and make them available for recycling as required in section 22-52. Nothing in this article is intended to prevent any person(s) from donating or selling recyclable materia...
Illegal Dumping
Dumping solid waste or recyclable material anywhere in unincorporated Lee County outside an approved site is illegal under Article X of the county code. Accumulating more than 50 pounds or 100 cubic feet of waste on any property is automatically declared a public nuisance under Section 22-156, and Section 22-157 lets the county trace dumped waste back to whoever it belonged to.
Illegal Dumping Rules in Lee County, NC
Heavy RestrictionsLee County Code §§ 22-156, 22-157, 22-169
Sec. 22-156. - Illegal disposal sites. ... (b)Pursuant to the provisions of G.S. 153A-140, the unlawful storage, accumulation or presence of solid waste and/or recyclable materials on public or private property in the territorial jurisdiction of this chapter in an amount exceeding 50 pounds or 100 cubic feet is hereby ordained and declared ... to be a public nuisance. S ... ec. ... 22-157. - Il...
Yard Waste Collection
Yard waste, defined by the county as vegetative matter from landscaping, is on the list of items Lee County's solid waste collection facilities will not accept, alongside dead animals, sludges and barrels. Residents must find another disposal route for it.
Yard Waste Rules in Lee County
Significant RestrictionsLee County Code §§ 22-3, 22-34
Yard trash means solid waste consisting solely of vegetative matter resulting from landscaping maintenance. ... The following wastes will not be accepted at the county solid waste collection facilities: ... (12)Animal feces;(13)Dead animals;(14)Yard waste;(15)Sludges;(16)Barrels;
Dumpster Rules
Non-residential, multi-family, and single-family attached developments in unincorporated Lee County that don't use curbside roll-out carts must screen solid waste dumpsters from public view and keep them out of the front setback, street yard, or buffer yard.
Dumpster Screening Rules in Lee County
Some RestrictionsLee County Unified Development Ordinance § 10.1.4
10.1.4.Solid waste storage areas/dumpsters. The provisions of this subsection 10.1.4 shall apply to all non-residential development, multi-family residential developments and/or single-family attached residential developments, which do not use roll-out containers for curbside solid waste pickup.10.1.4.1.Solid waste dumpsters or other large containers for solid waste storage shall be located in ...
Collection Schedule
Unincorporated Lee County has no municipal curbside pickup schedule. Owners and tenants must clear all solid waste from their property at least once every seven days, and residents mostly self-haul it to an authorized county convenience center or a licensed private hauler.
Solid Waste Collection Rules in Lee County
Some RestrictionsLee County Code §§ 1-7, 22-15, 22-31
each violation of this Code shall not constitute a misdemeanor, and violations of such provisions of this Code shall be punished by a civil penalty not exceeding $500.00. ... The owner, occupant, tenant or lessee of any property shall remove or cause to be removed all solid waste from his/her property at least once each week (a seven-day period). ... The owner or occupant of premises within the...
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