Hanover County, VA Trash & Recycling: Illegal Dumping (2026)

Section 18-2 of the Hanover County Code makes it a class 1 misdemeanor for any person to dump or otherwise dispose of trash, garbage, refuse or other unsightly matter on a public highway, right-of-way, property adjacent to such highway or right-of-way, or on private property without the written consent of the owner or the owner's agent. The section, adopted by Ordinance No. 2-936 of the Code of Virginia, the state's litter-from-a-vehicle arrest procedure, and the owner or operator of that vehicle is presumed, subject to rebuttal by competent evidence, to be the person who ejected the trash.

That presumption matters in roadside dumping cases where deputies cannot identify who physically threw material from a car window but can trace the vehicle. A related offense, offensive or unsanitary accumulations on certain property under Section 18-3, separately criminalizes letting garbage, trash or rubbish pile up outdoors in an offensive or unsanitary manner on subdivision lots, small parcels, commercial lots or multi-family sites, and also carries a class 1 misdemeanor penalty. Because neither Section 18-2 nor Section 18-3 states a specific fine, Section 1-11 of the code applies: violations default to the state law penalty prescribed for a class 1 misdemeanor, and each day a dumping violation continues can be charged as a separate offense.

Reports of illegal dumping in Hanover County outside the Town of Ashland go to the Sheriff's Office or the Department of Public Works, which administers Chapter 18 generally.