Stearns County, MN Trash & Recycling: Dumpster Rules (2026)

32 of Stearns County Ordinance No. 439, the Land Use and Zoning Ordinance, governs where and how commercial dumpsters and recycling containers can sit outdoors. Whenever a trash enclosure or recycling collection area is provided for any property other than one containing residential uses, the property must enclose it on at least three sides with a neutral-colored fence or other screening material that stays at least 80 percent opaque year-round and stands at least six feet tall. The one open side of the enclosure cannot face any public street or the front yard of an abutting property, which forces businesses and institutions to orient roll-off boxes and dumpster corrals toward interior lot lines, alleys or rear service areas rather than street frontage.

30), and the section carries a note that it was last amended April 8, 2025. 32 is a zoning performance standard rather than a licensing provision, compliance is checked through the County's Land Use and Development Services office (Planning and Zoning) as part of site plan review, building permitting, or a zoning complaint investigation, rather than through the separate Solid Waste Ordinance's container-specification rules in Section 6, which govern how waste is stored inside a container rather than where the container itself sits on the lot.