Provo, UT Trash & Recycling: Dumpster Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Provo City Code 14.34.080(4)
- Size threshold
- Applies to 2+ cubic yard containers
- Screening required
- Durable, architecturally compatible material
- Front/side yard placement
- Barred without a conditional use permit
- Residential-adjacent lots
- Extra setback under Sec. 14.34.300
- Open accumulation penalty
- Class B misdemeanor (Sec. 14.34.080(5))
Summary
Provo requires trash storage containers of two cubic yards or larger to be screened and set back under City Code 14.34.080. Enclosures cannot sit in a required yard without a conditional use permit, and containers on nonresidential lots next to residential zones must meet extra setback standards.
Trash storage containers shall be maintained in a location approved by the Planning Commission in conjunction with approval of a project plan or as required by Section 11.03.090 (Solid Waste Containers), Provo City Code. Trash storage container locations approved in conjunction with a project plan shall meet the following requirements: (a) Trash storage containers shall be screened with durable materials architecturally compatible with the principal structure or perimeter fence/wall treatment located on the lot served. Such containers shall be screened from any abutting lot or public street. (b) Trash storage container enclosures shall not project into a required yard unless authorized by conditional use permit issued pursuant to Chapter 14.02, Provo City Code. (c) Trash storage containers located on a lot used for nonresidential purposes and which abuts a residential zone shall meet the setback requirements of Section 14.34.300, Provo City Code.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 2026-17, passed June 9, 2026).
Full Breakdown
090's Solid Waste Containers standard. Once approved, every location must meet three fixed conditions. First, the container must be screened with durable materials that architecturally match either the main building or the perimeter fence and wall treatment on the lot, and the screening must block the view from any abutting lot or public street, not just the front. 02. 300, on top of the screening requirement. The code also tells the Planning Commission how to weigh competing site constraints when it reviews a placement: first priority goes to ease of access for the trash trucks, second to setback and screening that cuts odor nuisance and hides the container from view, and third to ease of access for whoever uses the container day to day.
The two-cubic-yard threshold matters because it draws the line between a regulated commercial dumpster or roll-off and Provo's own ninety-gallon residential cart, which is expressly carved out of every requirement in this subsection. 250(10)(b) must keep any outdoor dumpster twenty feet from residential property with screening on top of that distance.
Violations & Fines
Placing or maintaining an unscreened or unpermitted dumpster enclosure is enforced as a zoning violation through Provo's Development Services Department; a container that projects into a required yard without an approved conditional use permit is out of compliance on its face under 14.34.080(4)(b). Separately, letting trash, junk, or scrap accumulate in the open outside an approved enclosure is a class B misdemeanor under 14.34.080(5) if it creates a health hazard, fire hazard, rodent harborage, or attractive nuisance to children.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a business in Provo put a dumpster wherever it wants on the lot?
Does a small business trash can need screening in Provo?
What if a commercial dumpster sits next to a house in Provo?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Provo
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