Marin County, CA Trash & Recycling: Bulk Item Disposal (2026)
Key Facts
- Bulky waste examples
- Mattresses, appliances, tires, tree limbs
- Excluded from definition
- Abandoned vehicles, hazardous waste
- Self-haul exception
- Own vehicle to approved disposal site
- Retailer take-back exception
- Free removal with replacement purchase
- 1st violation
- Written warning
- Escalating fines
- $100 / $200 / $500
Summary
Marin County Code § 7.00.010 defines "bulky waste" as oversized items such as mattresses, appliances, furniture, tires and tree limbs that normal collection cannot handle. Outside of a retailer take-back program under § 7.00.110(B)(9), bulky waste in unincorporated Marin can only be collected by a hauler under the county's solid waste franchise agreement.
"Bulky waste" means large items of solid waste such as appliances, e.g., white goods, e-waste (except for universal waste), furniture, tires, carpets, mattresses and similar large items, large auto parts, trees, branches, stumps, and other oversized waste(s) whose large size precludes or complicates their handling by normal collection, processing, or disposal methods. It does not include abandoned vehicles or household hazardous waste. ... Bulky items direct from retailer. Bulky items such as mattresses or large appliances that are removed and recycled as part of a service, provided by a retailer, when a customer purchases a replacement product.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Municipal Code: Supplement 2026 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
00, adopted in 2022 to bring the county into compliance with the state's organics and diversion mandates, defines bulky waste to include white goods, e-waste other than universal waste, furniture, tires, carpets, mattresses, large auto parts, trees, branches and stumps, but the definition expressly excludes abandoned vehicles and household hazardous waste, which fall under separate programs. 110(A) requires anyone who collects, handles, transfers, stores, processes or transports solid waste in the unincorporated area, bulky waste included, to first hold a franchise agreement with the county.
110(B)(9) exempts bulky items such as mattresses or large appliances that a retailer removes and recycles as part of a delivery service when a customer buys a replacement product. 110(B)(3) and (B)(4). Any collection outside these carve-outs must run through the county's franchised hauler.
Violations & Fines
Collecting or transporting bulky waste in unincorporated Marin without a county franchise agreement or an applicable exception violates § 7.00.110 and is enforced under § 7.00.160: a first violation draws a written warning, a second draws a notice of violation with sixty days to comply, and continued noncompliance triggers administrative fines of $100 for a first fine, $200 for a second, and $500 for a third or later violation, with a right to an administrative hearing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I haul my own old mattress to the dump myself?
Does buying a new refrigerator get rid of my old one for free?
What happens if I hire an unlicensed hauler for a bulky item pickup?
Are junked cars picked up as bulky waste?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Marin County
California rules heatmap·Compare Marin County to another location·View the California trash & recycling overview
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