Tustin, CA Trash & Recycling: Dumpster Rules (2026)

Two sections of Article 4, Chapter 3 of the Tustin City Code govern where dumpsters and roll-off boxes can sit. Section 4312(d)(3)(a) requires that all municipal solid waste and divertable materials containers, for both residential and commercial customers, be stored within a building or shielded from view, enclosed by a wall not less than six feet in height, and bars any container storage area from sitting within fifty feet of a residential or open-space planning area unless it is fully enclosed. New construction and remodels must build in enough storage space for those containers before the City will sign off on a building permit.

Separately, Section 4321 requires a City-issued solid waste collection contract before any roll-off box, bin, cart, or other container can even be dropped at a property or picked up from a customer, closing off unlicensed roll-off drop services inside city limits. If a container is placed without that authorization, Section 4372 lets the Director of Public Works post a notice to remove it; the owner has twenty-four hours to haul it away before the City removes, stores, and disposes of it at the owner's expense, and unclaimed containers become abandoned property after ninety days.

A second unlawful placement by the same owner can be removed immediately, without a fresh notice, once the City has already removed one of that owner's containers. Roll-off box sizes referenced throughout the chapter run from ten to forty cubic yards.