Queen Anne's County, MD Trash & Recycling: Pickup Rules & Schedules (2026)

Section 25-18 of the Queen Anne's County Code is the core rule for what residents do before and after the truck comes. Producers of refuse shall store the refuse in accordance with the requirements of the Department, which is the Department of Public Works. A person may not place refuse in a street, alley, or other public place, or on any private property in the County, whether owned by that person or not, unless it is in proper receptacles for collection or under an express approval granted by the Director. A person also may not throw or deposit refuse in a stream or other body of water.

Two more bans protect the curbside process. A person may not permit receptacles to remain on curbs, road shoulders, or alleyways beyond the day of collection, and, except for the collector or the occupants of the premises, a person may not remove the covers or any contents from refuse receptacles. The second rule stops scavenging from set-out cans.

Subsection B covers buildup on a lot. Unauthorized accumulation of refuse on any premises is a nuisance and is prohibited, and failure to remove an unauthorized accumulation after proper notice is a violation of Part 2. The notice step means the Department gives a chance to clean up before the failure becomes a violation.

Preparation rules from § 25-16 feed into pickup. Garbage must be drained of all free liquids and wrapped in paper before it goes into garbage cans. Rubbish must be drained of liquid. Tree trimmings and hedge clippings must be cut to no more than four feet and tied in bundles no more than two feet thick. Cardboard boxes must be broken down, flattened, and tied in bundles not exceeding four feet in diameter and six inches in thickness, and newspapers and magazines not in containers must be tied in bundles not exceeding 50 pounds.

Where service exists, a collector contracted by the County collects household refuse in a solid waste subdistrict (§ 25-10), at least once each week (§ 25-22), and the Director can set days of collection under § 25-4 B. The County does not run a pickup service for incorporated towns: Centreville, Queenstown, Church Hill, Sudlersville, Barclay, Templeville, and the county's part of Millington follow their own codes. Kent Island, Stevensville, Chester, and Grasonville are unincorporated and covered.