Ridgecrest, CA Trash & Recycling: Yard Waste Collection (2026)
Key Facts
- Definition
- Organic waste from yard/landscaping maintenance
- Composting exception
- Active compost piles exempt from ban
- Collection
- Via franchised organic-materials hauler
- Violation
- Treated as public nuisance
Summary
Ridgecrest, Kern County, California defines yard trimmings as organic waste and bars accumulating it on a property unless it's being actively composted; otherwise it must go out with the franchised organic-materials collection service.
Yard waste means types of organic waste resulting from normal yard and landscaping installation, maintenance, or removal.
(Code 1980, § 13-1.2; Ord. No. 11-04, § 6; Ord. No. 22-01, § 3, 3-2-2022)
Sec. 13-21. - Deposit in public place and accumulation prohibited. (a)No person shall cause discarded materials (except yard waste that is being actively composted) to be accumulated upon public or private property.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 6).
Full Breakdown
Ridgecrest City Code § 13-20 defines "yard waste" as organic waste from normal yard and landscaping installation, maintenance, or removal. Section 13-21(a) prohibits letting discarded materials, including yard waste, accumulate on public or private property, with an explicit exception when the yard waste is being actively composted. Property owners subscribe to the city's franchised hauler for organic-materials collection under § 13-22, and § 13-23 repeats the composting exception for the separate ban on burying or stockpiling waste.
Violations & Fines
Accumulating yard waste that isn't being actively composted is treated as an unlawful deposit and a public nuisance under Chapter 11, subject to the same infraction penalties and city abatement process as other nuisance violations.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I keep a brush or leaf pile in my yard in Ridgecrest?
How is yard waste collected in Ridgecrest?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Ridgecrest
California rules heatmap·Compare Ridgecrest to another location·View the California trash & recycling overview
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Yard Waste Collection in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Kern County handle yard waste collection.