Blaine, MN Trash & Recycling: Dumpster Rules (2026)

Section 62-21(d)(1) sets container standards for every property owner, occupant or business that accumulates refuse in the City of Blaine: containers must be rust-resistant, watertight, nonabsorbent and easily washable, fitted with a bail or handle and a close-fitting lid, and sized to store everything that accumulates between collections. The same subsection draws a line for businesses specifically: once a place of business generates more than three 32-gallon containers of refuse per week, it must switch from cans to a dumpster, which the Code requires to hold at least one cubic yard and to be covered with a lid that keeps precipitation and animals out.

Placement of that dumpster is governed separately by section 62-21(c)(2), which requires business containers to sit in conformance with the city's zoning provisions in Chapter 105 and to stay accessible to the hauler at all reasonable times. A business that wants to run its own dumpster hauling rather than use the city's contracted system must secure a private hauler's license from the city council under section 62-22(b), which can be revoked for noncompliance with the article. Community Development and the Blaine Fire Department both weigh in when a dumpster enclosure also has to meet fire-lane access and screening standards under the zoning chapters.