Novato, CA Trash & Recycling: Recycling Requirements (2026)

Section 19.20.120 of the Novato Zoning Ordinance sets storage standards for solid waste and recyclable materials under the California Solid Waste Reuse and Recycling Access Act. It applies to new multi-family residential and non-residential projects and to additions to existing non-residential projects. Multi-family projects with five or more units must give each dwelling an indoor area of at least three cubic feet for solid waste and three cubic feet for recyclable material, plus common storage areas sized by Table 3-3. In that table, five to six units need 12 square feet for solid waste and 12 for recycling, 24 in total; for 201 or more units, every additional 25 units adds 48 square feet for solid waste and 48 for recyclables. Common areas can be indoors or outdoors if readily accessible to all residents. Non-residential structures in every zoning district follow Table 3-4, which starts at 12 square feet each for buildings of 0-5,000 square feet and covers additions that increase floor area by 30 percent or more within any 12-month period.

Location rules keep solid waste and recycling storage adjacent to or combined with one another as far as practically feasible. It can sit only inside a specially designated structure, outside a structure within an approved fence or wall enclosure, in a designated interior court or yard with appropriate access, or in rear and interior side yards. It cannot sit in a required front yard, street side yard, parking area, or landscaped or open space area. Multi-family storage must be within 100 feet of an access doorway to each dwelling unit it serves. Driveways or aisles must give collection vehicles and personnel unobstructed access. Construction standards call for secured enclosures, a concrete pad within the fenced or walled area and a concrete apron, protection from adverse environmental conditions, and screening from view on at least three sides in a manner architecturally compatible with surrounding structures. Wood fencing should be knot free, durable material of at least 1-inch thickness.