Durham requires recyclables to be source-separated from garbage and set out in a separate bin — recyclables may not go in the garbage cart. Mixing recyclables with trash (or trash into recycling) can trigger a fee.
Durham City Code Sec. 58-97 requires recyclables to be properly prepared, separated from garbage, and placed in a separate bin; recyclables may not be put in the garbage receptacle. Sec. 58-103 requires separate receptacles for recyclables collected by the City or its contractor, and Sec. 58-134 says target recyclables go in a recycling bin at the curb, with a fee charged to owners who mix them with other refuse. Recycling drop-off centers may be used only for clean recyclable materials (Sec. 58-104). All garbage must be inside the green cart and all recyclables inside the blue cart; material left loose beside carts is not collected.
Mixing target recyclables with other refuse (or refuse into recycling containers) draws a fee set by City Council. General Chapter 58 violations carry a civil remedial fee, each day a separate offense.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
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Backyard composting is legal in Durham and the city offers a curbside food-waste program. Compost piles must be maintained so they do not harbor rodents or p...
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Durham has no ordinance banning artificial turf in residential yards. It counts toward impervious-surface and lot-coverage limits under the UDO, and cannot b...
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Durham lies in the Neuse River and Falls Lake watersheds, where state and UDO riparian buffer rules require a 50-foot protected buffer of native vegetation a...
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Rain barrels and cisterns are legal and encouraged in Durham; no county ordinance bans collecting rooftop rainwater. Durham has historically offered subsidiz...
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Durham enforces a year-round odd/even irrigation ordinance and can impose tighter water-shortage stages. As of June 2026 Durham is in Stage 2, which bans spr...
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Durham declares dense weeds, vines, briars and undergrowth a public nuisance when they harbor pests or sit near buildings. Overgrowth over 12 inches high mus...
See how Durham County's recycling requirements rules stack up against other locations.
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