Pima County, AZ Property Maintenance: Trash Bin Storage (2026)

Pima County Code Chapter 7.21 (Solid Waste Collection and Disposal) and the Pima County Department of Environmental Quality regulate solid waste management in unincorporated areas. Residents must use containers with tight-fitting, animal-resistant lids -- this is particularly important in the Sonoran Desert where javelinas, coyotes, and pack rats frequently scatter unsecured trash. Waste haulers in unincorporated Pima County are private companies (the county does not provide curbside service directly). Containers should be placed at the curb no earlier than the evening before collection and retrieved by the evening of collection day. Between collection days, bins should be stored in a location not visible from the street where possible, though the county does not have a strict screening ordinance. HOAs in the area commonly require bins be stored behind walls or inside garages. Illegal dumping in the desert is a significant problem enforced by the Pima County Sheriffs Department and the Department of Environmental Quality.