Pismo Beach, CA Trash & Recycling: Yard Waste Collection (2026)
Key Facts
- Green material status
- Counts as organic waste under Section 8.13.020
- Contract threshold
- Two cubic yards or more of solid waste per week
- Contract term required
- Organic waste managed per Public Resources Code Division 30, Part 3, Chapter 12
- Landscapers
- Defined as self-haulers under Section 8.13.020
- Base penalties
- $100 first, $200 second, $500 third or later violation
- Compliance deadline
- Sixty days after a notice of violation
Summary
In the City of Pismo Beach, California, green material and landscape and pruning waste count as organic waste under Chapter 8.13 and go in the green container. Multi-family and commercial properties that generate two cubic yards or more of total solid waste per week must write organic waste handling into their gardening and landscaping contracts.
"Organic waste" means solid wastes containing material originated from living organisms and their metabolic waste products, including but not limited to food, green material, landscape and pruning waste, ... or as otherwise defined in 14 CCR Section 18982(a)(46). ... "Source separated green container organic waste" ... means source separated organic waste, ... including food waste, that can be placed in a green container that is limited to the collection of that organic waste; or as otherwise specified in 14 CCR 18984.1(a) and (b), and excludes source separated blue container organic waste, carpets, non-compostable paper, and textiles. ... ... D. Multi-family premises that generate two (2) cubic yards or more of total solid waste per week (or other threshold defined by the state) that arrange for gardening or landscaping services shall require any contract or work agreement between the owner, occupant, or operator of a multi-family premises and a gardening or landscaping service specify that the organic waste generated by those services be managed in compliance with Chapter 12, Part 3, Division 30 of the Public Resources Code.
Full Breakdown
Pismo Beach regulates yard waste through Chapter 8.13, Mandatory Organic Waste Disposal Reduction, rather than through a stand-alone brush ordinance. Section 8.13.020 defines organic waste to include green material and landscape and pruning waste alongside food, and it defines source separated green container organic waste as source separated organic waste, including food waste, that goes in a green container limited to collection of that organic waste. That definition excludes source separated blue container organic waste, carpets, non-compostable paper, and textiles. Non-organic waste put in the green container, including carpet, hazardous wood waste and non-compostable paper, is a prohibited container contaminant.
For households, Section 8.13.030 requires single-family premises to subscribe to the city's three-container service and to place source separated green container organic waste in the green container. For property owners who hire help, Section 8.13.040(D) covers multi-family premises that generate two (2) cubic yards or more of total solid waste per week, or another threshold defined by the state, and arrange for gardening or landscaping services. The contract or work agreement with the service must specify that the organic waste those services generate be managed in compliance with Chapter 12, Part 3, Division 30 of the Public Resources Code. Section 8.13.050(D) imposes the same contract term on commercial businesses.
Hauling your own is regulated too. Section 8.13.020 says a self-hauler includes a landscaper or a person who back-hauls waste. Under Section 8.13.100, self-haulers must take source separated green container organic waste to a facility, operation, activity, or property that processes or recovers source separated organic waste, or alternatively to a high diversion organic waste processing facility. Commercial and multi-family self-haulers keep delivery receipts and weight tickets, plus the amount in cubic yards or tons delivered to each destination, and must give the city copies on request. A single-family generator that self-hauls organic waste is not required to record or report that information.
Section 8.13.020 also defines community composting as composting of green material and similar feedstock where the feedstock and compost on site at any one time do not exceed one hundred (100) cubic yards and seven hundred fifty (750) square feet. Chapter 8.13 prints no brush bundle size or pickup calendar. It refers instead to any collection agreement in effect (Section 8.13.010).
Violations & Fines
Section 8.13.130 applies to every violation of Chapter 8.13, including a landscaping contract that omits the required organic waste term and green material placed in the wrong container. The city issues a notice of violation requiring compliance within sixty days, then an administrative citation under Chapters 1.24 and 1.28. Base penalties are $100 for a first violation, $200 for a second, and $500 for a third or subsequent one.
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as yard waste under Pismo Beach's code?
Do landscaping contracts need special language?
Can a landscaper haul green waste away directly?
Can I compost my own yard waste on site?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Pismo Beach
California rules heatmap·Compare Pismo Beach to another location·View the California trash & recycling overview
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