Portsmouth, VA Trash & Recycling: Bulk Item Disposal (2026)

Section 16-35 of the Portsmouth City Code keeps bulk refuse out of the weekly garbage stream. Subsection (a) bars residents from putting it out as part of the regular collection process, and subsection (b) replaces that with an appointment system: a pickup is scheduled in advance by telephone or internet, in the manner and under the procedures the director establishes. Chapter 16 defines the director as the director of public works. The code defines bulk refuse to include bulky items such as household construction debris not generated by a contractor, furniture, tree trimmings, cuttings and shrubbery.

Brush has its own dimensions. Limbs, bushes and clippings that cannot fit in a receptacle or refuse bag under section 16-32(b) must be cut into lengths between four feet and six feet and stacked neatly at curbside in a pile of no more than six feet by six feet by six feet. Tree parts greater than 18 inches in diameter are not picked up, and disposal falls on the home owner or tenant. Trimmings cut by landscape or tree service contractors are refused too, and an owner or tenant who sets them out is subject to the charges and penalties of section 16-31. Yard waste that is too bulky for clear plastic bags (40 gallons or 25 pounds each, 20 bags per collection under section 16-32(b)) moves into the bulk refuse stream.

Subsection (d) limits who gets the service: the city does not collect bulk refuse from vacant lots, from business and commercial establishments, or from multifamily residential complexes. Placement is controlled by section 16-37, which requires bulk refuse to sit as near the curb as possible or between the sidewalk and the curb, never in a public alley, clear of water meters, TV cable boxes, power lines, utility poles and tree limbs, and no earlier than 24 hours before the scheduled collection date. Section 16-39 keeps construction, remodeling, razing and repair debris, and any material generated by a contractor, out of city collection entirely. Related rules in section 16-34 cover white goods, which go close to the curb with refrigerator and freezer doors removed and the units emptied, and tires, limited to four per 12-month period with a $25.00 charge for each additional tire. Residents moving in or out can request a special pickup under section 16-40 with 24 hours of notice to the waste management division.