Everett, WA Trash & Recycling: Illegal Dumping (2026)
Key Facts
- Core prohibition
- No dumping outside authorized disposal system
- Max penalty
- $500 fine and/or 6 months jail
- Disposal system
- Snohomish County solid waste system
- Related bans
- Parks (9.06.055), Chaplain Tract (8.64.090)
Summary
Dumping garbage, refuse or waste anywhere in Everett outside the authorized disposal system is a criminal offense, punishable by up to a $500 fine and six months in jail under the city's solid waste code.
No person shall dump, deposit, throw away, scatter, or permit to be deposited or scattered, any garbage, refuse or waste material in the city, except at the disposal site established and maintained by the city for such purposes. All garbage and refuse material brought to the disposal site must be in covered containers or hauled in a covered vehicle. The sanitation superintendent is directed to study the problems involved in the city in the disposal of industrial waste and septic tank effluent or sewage waste from private sewage disposal systems and to recommend to the city council appropriate rules and regulations or proposed ordinances concerning the disposition of such material in the city. The sanitation superintendent is directed to cooperate with industry and with collectors of effluent from private sewage disposal systems. (Prior code § 10.53.040.)
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 4194-26, passed July 29, 2026).
Full Breakdown
Everett Municipal Code § 8.12.040 makes it unlawful to dump, deposit, throw away or scatter garbage, refuse or waste material anywhere in the city except at the city's designated disposal site. Solid waste generated within Everett now flows through the Snohomish County solid waste system under EMC Chapter 8.10, so garbage left on private property, vacant lots, streets or waterways outside that authorized collection chain violates the code. EMC § 8.12.090 sets the penalty at up to a $500 fine, up to six months in jail, or both, for each violation. The city separately bans dumping on park property (EMC 9.06.055) and on the Chaplain Tract watershed (EMC 8.64.090).
Violations & Fines
Illegal dumping is punishable by up to a $500 fine, six months in jail, or both, under EMC § 8.12.090; separate provisions add penalties for dumping in parks or the Chaplain Tract.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is dumping trash on vacant land illegal in Everett?
Does Everett have a separate dumping law for parks?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Everett
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Illegal Dumping in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Snohomish County handle illegal dumping.