Atlantic County, NJ Trash & Recycling: Illegal Dumping (2026)
Key Facts
- Litter fine
- $100 to $500 per offense
- Hazardous waste dumping
- third-degree crime
- Vehicle litter presumption
- registered owner/driver presumed liable
- Litter enforcement
- any officer or Public Health Official
- Solid/hazardous waste enforcement
- County Public Health Officials
Summary
Atlantic County bans dumping litter, solid waste or hazardous waste on county property outside a licensed receptacle or facility. Littering draws a $100 to $500 fine per offense, and illegally dumping hazardous waste is a third-degree crime, enforced by County Public Health Officials and law enforcement under Chapter 90.
No person shall throw, drop, discard or otherwise place any litter upon county property other than in a litter receptacle. ... No person shall discard or dump any solid waste in any place not specifically designated and authorized pursuant to N.J.S.A. 13:1E-1 et seq. ... No person shall discard or dump any hazardous waste in any place not specifically designated and authorized pursuant to N.J.S.A. 13:1E-1 et seq. ... Any person convicted of violating § 90-2A of this chapter shall be subject to a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $500 for each offense. ... Any person convicted of violating § 90-2C of this chapter shall be guilty of a crime of the third degree and shall be subject to the penalties specified in N.J.S.A. 13:1E-9g(5) and N.J.S.A. 2C:43-2, or any amendments thereto.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4863463; v25 updated 2026-04-21; through 04-21-2026).
Full Breakdown
Chapter 90, adopted by the Board of Chosen Freeholders in 1989 as Ordinance No. 6-1989, sets three separate prohibited acts in § 90-2. Subsection A bars throwing, dropping, discarding or otherwise placing litter on county property, defined broadly to include any County-owned or controlled land, water or building, including streets, roads, highways, alleys, sidewalks and rights-of-way, unless it goes in a litter receptacle; where litter is thrown from a moving or stopped vehicle on county property, the code creates a rebuttable presumption that the registered owner, if present, or otherwise the driver, is responsible when there are two or more occupants and it cannot be determined which one is the violator.
A. 13:1E-1 et seq. Subsection C applies the same designated-site rule to hazardous waste. A. A. A. A. A. 2C:43-2. Section 90-4 splits enforcement: any law enforcement officer or County Public Health Official can enforce the litter ban, only County Public Health Officials enforce the solid waste ban, and both enforce the hazardous waste ban's criminal and civil sides respectively. Section 90-5 preserves the Division of Public Health's and the state Department of Environmental Protection's separate jurisdiction to prosecute under the underlying state statutes.
Violations & Fines
A litter conviction under § 90-2A carries a fine of $100 to $500 per offense. Solid waste dumping under § 90-2B is prosecuted by the County Division of Public Health under N.J.S.A. 26:3A2-25 and N.J.S.A. 13:1E-9f, with property forfeiture possible under N.J.S.A. 13:1K-1 et seq. Hazardous waste dumping under § 90-2C is a third-degree crime under N.J.S.A. 13:1E-9g(5) and N.J.S.A. 2C:43-2, which for a third-degree offense in New Jersey exposes a defendant to state prison time and fines beyond the local ordinance.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the fine for littering on Atlantic County property?
What happens if someone dumps hazardous waste on Atlantic County property?
Who enforces Atlantic County's littering and dumping ordinance?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Atlantic County
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