Lane County allows residential backyard composting and actively promotes it through its Waste Management program. There is no compost permit for home use, but compost must not become a nuisance — no putrescible-material odors, vectors, or accumulation of waste under Lane Code Chapter 9.
Home composting of yard debris and food scraps is permitted throughout Lane County and encouraged by Lane County Waste Management as a diversion strategy. No county permit is required for a residential backyard compost pile or bin. The limits come from the nuisance code: Lane Code Chapter 9 prohibits conditions involving putrescible material that gives rise to foul or offensive odors, and the accumulation, collection, storage, or disposal of solid waste in a way that creates a nuisance or attracts vectors. A properly managed compost pile is fine; a rotting, odor-producing, or rodent-attracting heap can be abated as a nuisance. Commercial-scale composting is separately regulated by ODEQ.
A nuisance compost/waste accumulation is a Class 1 failure to comply under LC Chapter 5; the County may order abatement and recover costs.
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