Carteret County, NC Trash & Recycling: Dumpster Rules (2026)

Section 1601.1.M of the Carteret County Zoning Ordinance, part of the county's general screening and buffering standards, governs dumpsters, trash compactors, and similar trash receptacles at any development in unincorporated Carteret County, residential or non-residential. The only exemption covers a receptacle that serves just one single-family or two-family home on its own premises; every other dumpster, including those at multi-family developments, shopping centers, restaurants, and offices, must sit inside a four-sided enclosure. Three of the four sides must be built of durable material that matches or complements the principal building on the property, and the fourth side is an opaque gate that latches securely so it cannot swing open on its own.

Both the wall and the gate must stand at least eight feet tall, and the ordinance specifically bars chain-link fencing for either the wall or the gate, so a wire enclosure will not pass inspection. One of the four sides is allowed a three-foot-wide pass-through opening so workers can reach the dumpster without unlatching the main gate, but the enclosure still has to be oriented so that opening faces away from the largest number of nearby homes, whether those homes sit on the same site or off-site.

This dumpster-enclosure rule sits inside the county's broader Section 1601 screening and buffering chapter, which the Planning Director or a designee administers alongside site plan review. Developers cannot get a certificate of occupancy until required screening, including dumpster enclosures, is installed and inspected.