Colorado Springs, CO Trash & Recycling: Yard Waste Collection (2026)

Sec. 101 defines YARD RUBBISH as 'tree branches, twigs, grass, shrub clippings, weeds, leaves and other general yard, garden and organic waste material,' a category kept separate from WASTE, which is defined to expressly exclude yard rubbish. Sec. 104(B) sets the placement rule: 'Yard rubbish that is not attractant waste may be placed in a garbage or refuse container. Waste shall be no longer than three feet (3') in length', so branches and clippings can share a normal cart with household trash as long as no single piece is longer than three feet; anything longer has to be cut down before it goes out.

Like household waste, yard rubbish falls under the weekly minimum-service standard of Sec. 103(A): owners must remove it from the premises at least once a week unless the Administrator is satisfied that an alternate disposal method is sanitary and equally frequent. Yard rubbish left to pile up on a property, or set out over the three-foot limit, is treated the same as any other improper accumulation under Sec. 105, which authorizes abatement through the Article 5 process, notice and order, a deadline to correct it, and a ten-day window to appeal to the Municipal Court Referee before the City can remove it by contractor and bill the owner.