The Department of Public Works provides weekly trash and recycling collection to approximately 107,000 DC households in buildings of 3 or fewer units. Buildings with 4+ units must contract with private haulers. Supercans must be placed at the curb or alley no earlier than 6:30 PM the night before and retrieved by 8:00 PM on collection day.
DC Department of Public Works (DPW) Solid Waste Management Administration provides once-weekly trash and recycling collection to residential buildings of three units or fewer, covering roughly 107,000 households. Buildings with four or more units are considered commercial waste generators and must contract with licensed private haulers per DC Code section 8-1031. DPW issues 32 or 64 gallon green Supercans for trash and blue bins for recycling. Collection schedules are posted by address at dpw.dc.gov and shift one day after major federal holidays (Christmas, New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Memorial Day, July 4, Labor Day, Thanksgiving). Per DCMR Title 21 section 706, residents may place Supercans out no earlier than 6:30 PM the evening before collection and must retrieve them by 8:00 PM on collection day. In rear-alley collection areas (common in row house neighborhoods like Capitol Hill, Shaw, and Bloomingdale), cans must be placed at the alley edge. Trash must be in sealed bags inside the Supercan; loose trash or cans overflowing past the lid will be rejected. Illegal dumping and unauthorized commercial use of residential collection carry steep penalties under DC Code 8-902.
Early set-out or late retrieval: $75 warning, then $150 fine per DCMR 21-706. Commercial waste in residential cans: $500. Illegal dumping: $500-$5,000 per DC Code 8-902, confiscation of vehicle, possible misdemeanor charges.
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