Norfolk, VA Trash & Recycling: Pickup Rules & Schedules (2026)

Under Sec. 41-17(a), the city collects solid waste from residential property on a regular schedule set administratively by the director of public works, and every single residence, duplex, and multiple residence of four units or fewer must pay for that city collection; larger multi-unit buildings and non-residential structures can get city service for a fee only at the director's discretion. Subsection (b) bars overflow: waste cannot be piled outside the container or allowed to overflow it except under regulations the director promulgates, and the city will not pick up overflow waste that hasn't been approved in advance.

Subsection (c) requires loose household waste to be bagged in a disposable, moisture-proof container before it goes into the collection container, and subsection (d) makes anyone using an automated collection container responsible for keeping it clean and odor-free and for bagging loose or wet garbage before it goes inside. These are the general pickup rules that sit above the more specific residential-service ratios in Sec. 41-18 and the container placement and timing rules in Sec. 41-20; together they cover who must use city collection, what can go in the container, and how it has to be packaged before the truck arrives.