Rockdale County, GA Trash & Recycling: Bin Placement Rules (2026)

Rockdale County Code § 226-3 sets three requirements for dumpster placement. Location: a dumpster must be enclosed within a building and out of sight from public streets, or located outside to the rear of the principal building. Pad: dumpsters must sit on a concrete pad sized and strengthened to support the weight of service vehicles, and restaurants and other food service establishments must slope their pad into a drain fitted with a grease trap. Screening: any dumpster not located in the rear yard must be surrounded by an opaque enclosure at least six feet high and further screened by perimeter planting as required in § 328-7.

The Code defines a dumpster as a portable container of one cubic yard or more used for temporary storage of garbage, trash or other refuse. Enforcement runs through the UDO's Title 1 enforcement chapter: the Department of Planning and Development can issue a correction notice giving a reasonable deadline to fix a violation (§ 110-4), and an uncorrected violation is cited to the Magistrate Court and punished under the Code's general penalty, § 1-11. The director may also issue a stop work order or revoke a permit or certificate of occupancy tied to the violation (§ 110-5), and the county can revoke the violator's business license for up to five years (§ 110-8).