DuPage County Code Sections 30-17 and 30-26 (Chapter 30, Solid Waste Management) prohibit the open burning of garbage, debris, refuse, and landscape waste in unincorporated DuPage County. Combined with the Illinois Solid Waste Planning and Recycling Act (415 ILCS 15), which bans landscape waste from Illinois landfills, every DuPage household must use a hauler-provided yard-waste program or compost on-site.
DuPage County Code Sections 30-17 and 30-26 sit inside Chapter 30 (Solid Waste Management) and make it unlawful to burn garbage, debris, refuse, or landscape waste in an open fire anywhere in unincorporated DuPage County. The DuPage County Department of Environment and Sustainability administers the rule and works with the DuPage County Sheriff and local fire protection districts on enforcement. The ordinance explicitly states that a "Recreational Fire" may not be used to dispose of any garbage, debris, refuse, or waste (including landscape waste); recreational fires are limited to clean, seasoned, dry firewood in a fire pit or grill under constant adult supervision.
A second, equally important layer of regulation comes from state law: the Illinois Solid Waste Planning and Recycling Act (415 ILCS 15) and the Illinois Environmental Protection Act (415 ILCS 5/22.22) bar the disposal of landscape waste at municipal solid waste landfills statewide. This is why every DuPage County waste hauler offers a separate curbside yard-waste collection program (typically April through November/December) using paper bags or county-approved kraft bags or tagged carts, with material directed to commercial composting sites. Residents who do not subscribe to a yard-waste service must compost on-site; mixing leaves, grass clippings, or brush into the regular MSW cart is a violation of both county and state law. Specific collection schedules, accepted material lists, and bag/tag requirements are set by each DuPage municipality and its franchised hauler.
Open burning of landscape waste under Sections 30-17 and 30-26 is punishable by fines of $500 to $1,000 per violation, plus court-ordered removal and proper disposal of the burned material at the violator's expense. Mixing landscape waste into landfill-bound refuse may also trigger Illinois EPA enforcement under 415 ILCS 5/22.22.
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