Portage County, WI Trash & Recycling: Illegal Dumping (2026)

Section 4.7.19, Prohibited Dumping, makes it 'unlawful for any person to dump or otherwise dispose of any solid waste upon any street, valley, highway, land, stream or waters within the County except at sites operated in compliance with Wisconsin DNR regulations.' Section 4.7.20, Prohibited Conduct, goes further: it is a violation to dispose of, dump, or bury garbage, yard waste or refuse on any road, right-of-way, or public or private land in Portage County; to accept or allow such dumping on land a person owns, operates or leases (lawful disposal is limited to sites licensed by the State of Wisconsin); to leave garbage or refuse where wind, water, or 'some other natural process' can carry it onto another property; or to let it fall from a moving vehicle onto a road, right-of-way, or county property.

Section 4.7.21 spells out narrow exceptions: un-bagged yard waste may be dumped or buried on private land only with the landowner's prior permission, and garbage, yard waste or refuse may otherwise be disposed of on a landowner's own private land only if it is not hazardous waste under Wis. Stat. ch. 289. The Portage County Sheriff's Department enforces these sections by citation, and the County can pursue civil, injunctive, or equitable relief in addition to a citation.