Warrick County, IN Trash & Recycling: Illegal Dumping (2026)

Section 50.21 of the Warrick County Code, titled "Bringing Waste Into County, Depositing In Landfill," makes it unlawful for any person or governmental organization to bring refuse, garbage or rubbish from outside the county except to an approved landfill, and separately unlawful to deposit refuse, garbage or rubbish anywhere within the county except in a landfill approved by the Board of Commissioners. The terms are defined in Section 50.15: REFUSE covers putrescible and non-putrescible solid and semi-solid wastes including garbage, rubbish, ashes, street cleanings, dead animals and commercial or industrial wastes, while RUBBISH is limited to non-putrescible waste such as cardboard, paper, plastic, metal or glass containers and yard clippings.

Section 50.22 carves out an exception for a private landfill used only for waste generated on the same premises. Beyond the fine, Section 50.23 gives the Circuit and Superior Courts of the county concurrent jurisdiction to enforce the penalty, and lets the Board of Commissioners or any aggrieved citizen sue for an injunction to stop a violation, since any landfill operated in violation of the subchapter is declared a public nuisance subject to abatement. This dumping ban sits alongside the county's broader landfill permitting scheme in Sections 50.17 through 50.20, which requires Board of Commissioners approval and State Board of Health sign-off before anyone may operate a landfill in the county at all.