Augusta-Richmond County, GA Trash & Recycling: Recycling Requirements (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Zoning Ord. § 16-3 (multi-family)
- Also applies to
- B-1 business uses, § 21-3
- Bin sizing
- 4 to 8-yard dumpster by unit count
- Clearance
- 10 feet from fire hydrants required
- Not covered
- Blythe and Hephzibah use own codes
Summary
Augusta-Richmond County's zoning ordinance requires multi-family and B-1 business developments to provide dumpsters and recyclable material bins sized to unit or employee count, with mandatory trash and recycling collection service for uses without individual pickup.
Trash and recycling collection services must be provided for any multi-family dwelling that does not qualify for individual trash and recycling collection service. Trash and recycling collection services shall use stationary containers, commonly known as dumpsters and recyclable material bins.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Recodification).
Full Breakdown
The Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance requires trash and recycling collection service for any multi-family dwelling that does not qualify for individual pickup, using dumpsters and recyclable material bins (Section 16-3); the identical dumpster-and-recycling-bin mandate applies to B-1 neighborhood-business uses under Section 21-3. Bin size scales with unit or employee count: a 4-yard dumpster for developments under eight units, 6-yard for eight to sixteen, 8-yard for seventeen to twenty-four. Enclosures must sit on concrete, stay clear of parking spaces, fire hydrants, sidewalks and rights-of-way, and be sized for the collection truck. This applies countywide except in Blythe and Hephzibah, which kept separate municipal codes after the 1996 city-county consolidation.
Violations & Fines
Planning and Development reviews dumpster and recycling-bin plans as part of site plan approval; enclosures that don't meet the concrete-pad, clearance, and access standards are rejected before development can proceed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Augusta-Richmond County require recycling bins at apartment complexes?
Do Blythe and Hephzibah follow this same rule?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Augusta-Richmond County
Compare Augusta-Richmond County to another location·View the Georgia trash & recycling overview
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