Imperial County, CA Trash & Recycling: Bin Placement Rules (2026)

Imperial County's Land Use Ordinance does not contain a specific cart set-out chapter with placement distances, set-out windows, or pull-back deadlines - reflecting that the unincorporated area relied on self-haul rather than curbside collection until mid-2026. The relevant baseline limit is the general nuisance and waste-accumulation rule: §90501.20 prohibits letting trash, cans, bottles, paper, or refuse accumulate where it can support vermin, and Division 13 lets scattered or overflowing refuse be declared and abated as a public nuisance. With the Solid Waste Franchise Zone program effective July 1, 2026, set-out and placement become the responsibility of the franchised hauler serving each zone. CR&R Environmental Services and Republic Services administer pickup days, cart placement, and set-out requirements under their franchise agreements, and residents look up their assigned hauler on the county's GIS map. Each home receives three 96-gallon carts (black, blue, green), and the practical placement rules - such as keeping carts a set distance from obstructions and out of the travel lane - come from the hauler's service standards rather than a county-code section. Parcels not yet inside a franchised zone continue under the self-haul model, where the only container limit is the nuisance standard.