Seattle, WA Trash & Recycling: Mandatory Organics Recycling (2026)
Key Facts
- Curbside compostable size limit
- No wood or limbs over 4 feet
- Bag format
- Plastic bags barred for curbside compostables
- Source limit
- Only waste generated at the dwelling unit
- Garbage-can violation fee
- $1 extra per can collection
- Detachable/drop box violation fee
- $50 extra per collection
Summary
Seattle's curbside compostable-waste program is mandatory, not optional: SMC 21.36.085.A requires food scraps and other compostable waste to be 'set apart from refuse for pickup in a manner that is readily identifiable by the collectors.' Food waste is also a required-recycling stream under SMC 21.36.083, carrying a $1 per-can fee for putting it in the garbage instead.
A.Curbside Compostable Waste Collection. Compostable waste for collection under the City's curbside program shall be set apart from refuse for pickup in a manner that is readily identifiable by the collectors. Compostable waste shall be defined as set forth in Section 21.36.012, except that compostable waste for curbside collection shall not include wood or tree limbs over four (4) feet long. Only compostable waste generated at the dwelling unit shall be collected at curbside. C.Plastic Bags and Compostable Waste. Compostable waste shall not be setout at the curb for collection in plastic bags nor shall plastic bags containing yardwaste be deposited in transfer station yardwaste collection areas or transfer trailers.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Municipal Code: Supplement 44 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
012, with one carve-out: curbside compostable waste can't include wood or tree limbs over four feet long, and only material generated at the dwelling unit itself qualifies for curbside collection, food scraps from a business can't be routed through a household's curbside bin. Subsection C then locks in the format: compostable waste 'shall not be setout at the curb for collection in plastic bags,' so residents need a paper compostables bag or a lined kitchen pail rather than a plastic grocery bag. A, which lists 'food waste' among the materials every resident in a single-family, multifamily, or mixed-use building must separate, and bars it from garbage containers, drop boxes, or the City's transfer stations.
2 adds $1 per can collection for curbside or backyard customers whose food scraps end up in the trash, and $50 per collection for detachable-container or drop-box customers. 040.
Violations & Fines
Food scraps found in the garbage stream draw the same per-collection fee structure as any other missed-recyclable under SMC 21.36.083.A.2, $1 extra for a curbside or backyard can, $50 extra for a detachable container or drop box. Setting compostables out in a plastic bag also violates SMC 21.36.085.C's format rule, independent of whether the material itself was properly separated.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Seattle residents have to separate food scraps from garbage?
Can I put my food scraps out in a plastic grocery bag?
What's the fine for putting food scraps in the garbage can?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Seattle
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Mandatory Organics Recycling in Nearby Cities
How other cities in King County handle mandatory organics recycling.