Merced, CA Trash & Recycling: Pickup Rules & Schedules (2026)

Trash collection in the incorporated City of Merced is performed by the City's own municipal Refuse Division, which is responsible for all solid waste collection within city limits. The Refuse Division handles scheduled and unscheduled service for residential, commercial and industrial customers, as well as special programs including Street Sweeping, seasonal Leaf Collection, Alley Cleanup, Tire Amnesty and the City's Bulky Item Drop-Off Site. The City - not a private franchised hauler - is the service provider inside city limits; Waste Management/WM serves unincorporated Merced County and other cities, not the City of Merced. Residential service uses three containers: grey for general household garbage, blue for accepted recyclables, and green for green waste/organics. For customers with physical limitations, the City offers an assisted refuse service in which an operator retrieves and returns the containers. Commercial customers can choose containers from a 300-gallon bin up to an 8-cubic-yard container with collection one to six times per week, arranged through a site evaluation. Residents and businesses arrange service, report missed pickups, or request assisted/commercial service through the Public Works Office Refuse Division at 209-385-6800. Specific per-violation fine amounts were not located in a fetched city source.