Trash & Recycling in Alabama (2026)
78 rules on the books across Alabama, 13 cities and counties. Select a rule to read the full details.
Severity: Few Restrictions · Light Restrictions · Some Restrictions · Significant Restrictions · Heavy Restrictions
Pickup Rules & Schedules
Trash and recycling collection days, what time to put bins out, and rules about sorting materials for curbside pickup.
Auburn
Some RestrictionsAuburn requires tenants, lessees and owners to keep a safe, clear path to garbage containers so solid waste crews can…
Read full rule →Hoover
Some RestrictionsHoover bars residents from placing trash, rubbish, garbage, or yard debris meant for city collection directly on the…
Read full rule →Huntsville
Some RestrictionsHuntsville residents must set garbage cans at the curb no earlier than sundown the night before collection day and pull…
Read full rule →Madison
Some RestrictionsIn Madison, Republic Services handles curbside trash and bulky items while recycling carts are collected monthly…
Read full rule →Mobile
Some RestrictionsMobile collects household garbage once a week on a set day by address; carts must reach the curb no earlier than noon…
Read full rule →Montgomery
Some RestrictionsCity Code Sec. 25-33 sets Montgomery's baseline pickup schedule: residential garbage at least twice a week, business…
Read full rule →Tuscaloosa
Some RestrictionsTuscaloosa residents must have garbage carts, recycling bins, and trash at the curb before 6:00 a.m. on their…
Read full rule →Vestavia Hills
Some RestrictionsVestavia Hills' sanitary department picks up garbage twice a week and trash once a week from every single-family and…
Read full rule →Bin Placement Rules
Where to position trash and recycling carts, when they may go to the curb and must come back, and the screening or enclosure rules for where bins live between pickups.
Auburn
Some RestrictionsAuburn residents in cart-service areas must place their 96-gallon roll-out cart at curbside by 6:00 a.m. on pickup day…
Read full rule →Bessemer
Some RestrictionsBessemer garbage cans and rubbish containers must keep lids tightly fitted except when in use, under Code of Ordinances…
Read full rule →Birmingham
Some RestrictionsBirmingham residents and businesses can't set garbage cans, bags or dumpsters out on the sidewalk any earlier than 6…
Read full rule →Huntsville
Some RestrictionsHuntsville residents must set their city-issued garbage cart within three feet of the curb, facing the right way with…
Read full rule →Jefferson County
Some RestrictionsIn the U.S. Highway 280 Corridor Overlay, Jefferson County's Sec. 1502.05 requires commercial and institutional…
Read full rule →Madison
Some RestrictionsAll trash must be placed at the curb or roadway edge by 6:00 a.m. on your collection day, and never under power lines…
Read full rule →Mobile
Some RestrictionsMobile zoning bars dumpsters from front yards, buffers, and rights-of-way, and requires an 8-foot enclosure of matching…
Read full rule →Mobile County
Some RestrictionsSection 45-49-252.07 requires solid waste to be stored on the property in vector-resistant, water-tight containers that…
Read full rule →Montgomery
Some RestrictionsMontgomery requires every resident to use the city-issued roll-out cart and put it at the curb no later than 7:00 a.m…
Read full rule →Tuscaloosa
Some RestrictionsTuscaloosa only picks up garbage set out in city-issued carts, City Code Sec. 16-93(a). Bags, cans, and other…
Read full rule →Vestavia Hills
Light RestrictionsVestavia Hills residents must set trash, leaves, limbs and bushes within five feet of the curbline, never in the street…
Read full rule →Bulk Item Disposal
How to dispose of large items like furniture, appliances, and mattresses, including scheduled pickups and drop-off locations.
Auburn
Some RestrictionsAuburn's solid waste department removes oversized burnable and nonburnable waste from residential premises on an…
Read full rule →Huntsville
Some RestrictionsHuntsville's sanitation division collects bulk waste, white goods, and loose yard waste weekly from residences, but…
Read full rule →Madison
Some RestrictionsRepublic Services collects appliances, furniture, mattresses, and yard debris weekly. Tree limbs must be under 8 feet…
Read full rule →Mobile
Some RestrictionsMobile's biweekly household trash pickup is free for up to two cubic yards or 15 bags of leaves per household; anything…
Read full rule →Mobile County
Some RestrictionsFurniture, trees, sod, lumber and other bulky items that don't count as ordinary garbage or rubbish are handled as…
Read full rule →Montgomery
Some RestrictionsMontgomery's sanitation department will haul away oversized brush, tree trunks and large appliances on a special…
Read full rule →Tuscaloosa
Some RestrictionsTuscaloosa's weekly trash service covers up to five cubic yards of bulky household trash per residence at no extra…
Read full rule →Vestavia Hills
Some RestrictionsVestavia Hills collects building debris, tree limbs and stumps as ordinary trash under strict size limits, capping each…
Read full rule →Birmingham
Light RestrictionsBirmingham lets residents set out bulky furniture and appliances at the curb for city pickup with no bags, boxes or…
Read full rule →Recycling Requirements
Mandatory recycling rules including which materials must be separated, contamination penalties, and composting requirements.
Alabama: statewide
StatewideFew RestrictionsAlabama imposes no mandatory recycling on residents or businesses. Under the Solid Wastes and Recyclable Materials…
Read full rule →Madison
Some RestrictionsRecycling in Madison is a free, voluntary program run by RANA (a division of the Solid Waste Disposal Authority)…
Read full rule →Tuscaloosa
Some RestrictionsOnce you set recyclables at the curb or in a city-designated bin in Tuscaloosa, they legally become city property, City…
Read full rule →Vestavia Hills
Some RestrictionsCode Sec. 14-31(9) requires the city's sanitation contractor to collect recyclables from every residential unit once a…
Read full rule →Holiday Pickup Schedule
How collection days shift around major holidays, where to verify the current schedule, and rules for putting bins out around shifted pickup dates.
Mobile
Some RestrictionsMobile's household garbage collects weekly and household trash collects every other week, but both schedules can shift…
Read full rule →Tuscaloosa
Light RestrictionsWhen a legal holiday falls on a Tuscaloosa collection day, City Code Sec. 16-95(c) cancels that day's garbage and trash…
Read full rule →Montgomery
Few RestrictionsMontgomery's sanitation department runs residential garbage twice a week and yard rubbish once a week under City Code…
Read full rule →Illegal Dumping
Penalties and enforcement for dumping trash, debris, or hazardous materials on private or public property without authorization.
Huntsville
Heavy RestrictionsDumping litter, debris, or waste on public property or someone else's property in Huntsville is a misdemeanor under…
Read full rule →Mobile
Heavy RestrictionsDumping litter, garbage, trash, or junk on any private or public property in Mobile without permission is a Chapter 25…
Read full rule →Mobile County
Heavy RestrictionsDumping refuse in a street, ditch, lake or private property you don't control is banned under Section 45-49-252.14(d)…
Read full rule →Montgomery
Heavy RestrictionsDumping garbage anywhere but a sanitary landfill, or depositing refuse on streets, sidewalks or someone else's…
Read full rule →Tuscaloosa
Heavy RestrictionsDumping gravel, cement, garbage, trash, debris or litter of any kind on Tuscaloosa streets, public ways, or private…
Read full rule →Lee County
Significant RestrictionsA Legislature-enacted nuisance law declares the accumulation and storage of junk, litter and discarded tires in…
Read full rule →Auburn
Some RestrictionsAuburn makes it unlawful to dump garbage anywhere other than a sanitary landfill, and the city's residential trash…
Read full rule →Bessemer
Some RestrictionsDumping refuse, litter, or debris on a Bessemer street, public thoroughfare, or within 20 yards of one is unlawful…
Read full rule →Birmingham
Some RestrictionsBirmingham makes it a crime to knowingly dump litter on public or private property or waters without permission, drop…
Read full rule →Hoover
Some RestrictionsHoover bans accumulating or dumping solid waste, garbage, or refuse on any property in a way that becomes a nuisance or…
Read full rule →Jefferson County
Some RestrictionsJefferson County's Weed and Litter Ordinance bars anyone in charge of unincorporated-area property from letting…
Read full rule →Vestavia Hills
Some RestrictionsVestavia Hills bans dumping earth material, trash, construction debris and other waste on public or private property…
Read full rule →Yard Waste Collection
Rules for separating grass clippings, leaves, branches, and other yard waste from regular trash, including pickup days and bag/bin requirements.
Auburn
Some RestrictionsAuburn requires residents to separate yard waste, leaves, grass clippings, straw and tree limbs, from metal and other…
Read full rule →Birmingham
Some RestrictionsGrass clippings, leaves, pine straw and small brush, defined as 'yard rubbish' under City Code § 4-3-1.1, must go…
Read full rule →Hoover
Some RestrictionsHoover residents place tree branches, yard trimmings, and leaves loose at the curb for city pickup, no bagging…
Read full rule →Huntsville
Some RestrictionsHuntsville's sanitation division collects loose yard waste, tree limbs, and bagged leaves weekly at the curb, but tree…
Read full rule →Mobile
Some RestrictionsMobile collects yard waste as part of household trash under Sec. 25-6, picked up every other week. Leaves, straw, and…
Read full rule →Mobile County
Some RestrictionsIn unincorporated Mobile County, yard trash counts as rubbish and gets picked up weekly, but Section 45-49-252.06 caps…
Read full rule →Montgomery
Some RestrictionsSmall yard debris like hedge cuttings and limbs under four feet long or eight inches thick goes out with regular trash…
Read full rule →Tuscaloosa
Some RestrictionsYard waste too big to bag, limbs, brush, and shrubbery, must be cut to no more than eight feet long and eight inches in…
Read full rule →Vestavia Hills
Some RestrictionsCode Sec. 14-31 caps tree limbs at four feet and 50 pounds, tree stumps at 50 pounds, and building debris at 50 pounds…
Read full rule →Dumpster Rules
Permits and placement rules for residential or construction dumpsters, including how long they can stay and ROW obstruction limits.
Mobile County
Significant RestrictionsSection 45-49-252.07(f) requires mechanically serviced bulk containers, the roll-off dumpsters used at commercial and…
Read full rule →Tuscaloosa
Significant RestrictionsCommercial haulers licensed under Chapter 7 of the Tuscaloosa City Code need the city's written consent before setting…
Read full rule →Auburn
Some RestrictionsAuburn requires every dumpster serving an apartment, townhouse or condominium development to sit on a hard surface…
Read full rule →Bessemer
Some RestrictionsBessemer limits a business, commercial or industrial premises to four garbage or rubbish cans at a time. Once trash…
Read full rule →Birmingham
Some RestrictionsBirmingham businesses that need more than four garbage cans under City Code § 4-3-4 must instead provide a special…
Read full rule →Hoover
Some RestrictionsHoover bars refuse haulers from emptying dumpsters on property next to residentially zoned land between 10 p.m. and 7…
Read full rule →Huntsville
Some RestrictionsHuntsville requires commercial dumpsters to sit on a paved surface, stay screened from adjacent property, and never…
Read full rule →Mobile
Some RestrictionsMobile bars placing waste dumpsters in front yards, protection buffers, right-of-way or street frontages, and requires…
Read full rule →Montgomery
Some RestrictionsBusinesses, apartment complexes and condominiums that use a contractor for garbage service have to place their…
Read full rule →Vestavia Hills
Some RestrictionsVestavia Hills bars dumpsters, trash and recycling containers from sitting forward of a building's front line under…
Read full rule →Collection Schedule
Day-of-week pickup schedules by neighborhood, set-out and take-back time windows, and where to find your specific block's schedule.
Auburn
Some RestrictionsAuburn requires every occupied premises to subscribe to city refuse service, and residential garbage is collected once…
Read full rule →Bessemer
Some RestrictionsOnly a city council franchised hauler may collect garbage or trash on Bessemer streets and alleys under Code of…
Read full rule →Birmingham
Some RestrictionsEvery Birmingham dwelling, hotel, restaurant or store that generates garbage must keep enough approved containers on…
Read full rule →Huntsville
Some RestrictionsHuntsville's sanitation division collects household garbage from every single-family home once a week on a…
Read full rule →Lee County
Some RestrictionsUnincorporated Lee County runs a mandatory solid waste collection program funded through fees the Lee County Board of…
Read full rule →Mobile
Some RestrictionsThe city collects household garbage once a week and household trash (bulky/yard waste) every other week, with carts…
Read full rule →Mobile County
Some RestrictionsOnly a county-franchised, permitted hauler may collect residential solid waste in unincorporated Mobile County, and…
Read full rule →Montgomery
Some RestrictionsMontgomery's sanitation department collects household garbage at least twice a week and rubbish, leaves, grass and…
Read full rule →Tuscaloosa
Some RestrictionsCity Code Sec. 16-92(b) requires every occupied residential premises in Tuscaloosa to subscribe to municipal garbage…
Read full rule →Vestavia Hills
Some RestrictionsThe Vestavia Hills sanitary department runs mandatory garbage and trash service for every single-family and multifamily…
Read full rule →Recycling Rules
Which items can and cannot go in residential single-stream recycling bins, contamination penalties, and rules for hazardous-waste drop-off.
Auburn
Some RestrictionsAuburn requires recyclables to be set out for pickup exactly like trash: placed in front of the home behind the curb…
Read full rule →Tuscaloosa
Some RestrictionsOnce you set recyclables at the curb, on city right-of-way, or in a city-designated bin in Tuscaloosa, they legally…
Read full rule →