Gaston County, NC Trash & Recycling: Collection Schedule (2026)

Sec. 7-3(b) of Gaston County's solid waste ordinance puts the weekly removal duty on whoever controls the property, owner, occupant, tenant, or lessee, rather than mandating a specific county contractor. Solid waste must be removed from the property at least once every seven-day period, and removal must end at a facility permitted to accept the waste, so simply relocating trash to another spot does not satisfy the section. Sec. 7-3(c) backs the weekly schedule with container standards: garbage must sit in a durable, rust-resistant, water-resistant container with a close-fitting, fly-resistant lid, sized to hold a full week's accumulation, and kept clean enough that it creates no odor or nuisance.

Residents who use the county's own solid waste and recycling centers instead of a private hauler are governed by Sec. 7-5, which limits those centers to residential customers, restricts deposits to operating hours, and runs fees through a card-based system rather than cash. Approved final disposal outlets under Sec. 7-3(h) include a sanitary landfill approved by the North Carolina Division of Solid Waste Management, an incinerator holding all required air-pollution permits, or another division-approved reclamation or recycling method. Chapter 7 was adopted by Res. No. 2003-353, October 30, 2003.