Lynwood, CA Landscaping Rules: Composting (2026)

Lynwood's organics ordinance, Lynwood Municipal Code § 9-7, lets a household reduce its reliance on the city's mandatory green-container collection service by composting on site. Section 9-7.3(a) states that single-family generators may manage their organic waste by preventing or reducing waste generation, managing organic waste on site, or using a community composting site under 14 CCR § 18984.9(c), rather than subscribing solely to the city's collection service. Section 9-7.2 defines 'community composting' as any activity that composts green material, agricultural material, food material, and vegetative food material where the total feedstock and finished compost present on site at any one time does not exceed 100 cubic yards and 750 square feet, tracking the state cap in 14 CCR § 17855(a)(4).

A composting operation that exceeds those limits no longer qualifies as exempt community composting and instead needs full solid-waste facility permitting. Under § 9-7.8(b), a community composting operator must, upon the city's request, provide information supporting the city's organic waste capacity planning, including an estimate of the amount of organic waste the operation expects to handle, and must respond within 60 days unless the city sets a shorter deadline. The ordinance does not set a separate bin-size or setback standard for a single household's own backyard compost pile; a resident composting only their own material stays outside the community composting definition and its size cap entirely.