Champaign, IL Landscaping Rules: Composting (2026)

Section 35-40 sets the size and siting standards for any compost cell or pile in Champaign: the maximum volume is 125 cubic feet and the maximum height is five feet, the cell must be restrained on three sides to keep material from blowing, and side walls must allow aeration. The cell cannot sit in a floodway, cannot be closer than three feet to a property line unless it's jointly maintained by two or more abutting owners, and cannot be closer than fifteen feet to a neighbor's dwelling; runoff or leachate from the pile cannot drain onto a neighboring property.

Section 35-41 limits what can go in: dirt, grass and grass clippings, waste sod, leaves, woody materials, garden waste cut to no more than a half-inch diameter and twelve inches long, and cooked or uncooked fruit and vegetable scraps, with small amounts of wood ash or fertilizer allowed as a nutrient boost. Section 35-42 excludes construction and demolition debris, metal, preservative-treated wood, petroleum products such as gasoline or paint, pesticides and herbicides, animal or fish feces (except hen manure under a coop license per Sec. 7-19), animal carcasses, cooked meat scraps, human feces, and paper, plastic, or cardboard normally handled as solid waste.