Trash and Yard Waste

Solid Waste Financial Assistance

Residents of Chapel Hill who receive Solid Waste services from the Town may qualify for discounts (25%, 50%, or 90%) on paid services, including trash and yard cart purchases, bulky item collection, and large yard pile collection. 

Income Requirement Examples for a 2-Person Household:

• 25% discount: up to $74,000
• 50% discount: up to $46,250
• 90% discount: up to $27,800

How to apply

Complete the Financial Assistance Application(PDF, 293KB) and submit a printed copy. Do not email sensitive financial information.

• In person
  • 6850 Millhouse Road (Building One), Chapel Hill
  • Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM
• By mail
  • Public Works
  • 405 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd
  • Chapel Hill, NC 27514

Retroactive Partial Refunds

If approved, you can request a partial refund for purchases made since July 1, 2025.

Using Your Discount

Call Public Works at 919-969-5100 during business hours to make a purchase over the phone using a credit card.

Household Trash and Yard Trimmings schedule: 

Search for your address in the Solid Waste Service Area Eligibility Check.

• Green = Monday trash collection. Thursday yard trimmings collection.
• Orange = Tuesday trash collection. Friday yard trimmings collection.

Household Trash and Yard Trimmings Fees

These services are already paid for by property taxes:

• Weekly household trash collection
• One trash roll cart per household
• Weekly yard trimmings collection

You do not need to set up a special account for those services.

These services require additional fees:

• Bulky item and electronics collection ($15 base fee for 1-3 items, $5 per additional item)
• Extra trash cart ($60 each)
• Yard trimmings cart ($75 each)
• Large yard trimmings pile collection ($125 per load) 

How to pay:

• You can pay for services online through Jotform.
  • There is a 2.9% credit card processing fee and $0.30 transaction fee.
• You can also call 919-969-5100 during business hours. 
  • We are open 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. on weekdays.

Missed Trash or Yard Trimmings Collection

Trash or yard trimmings that aren't out by 6:00am on your collection day will be picked up the next week.

If your trash or yard trimmings weren't picked up, call us at 919-969-5100.

Household trash is picked up once a week. Property taxes pay for this service, so you don't need to set up a special account.

The University provides trash collection on campus.

What do I need to know about trash carts?

One green, 65-gallon trash cart is provided to each household at no charge.

• Residents are responsible for cart upkeep. Wash with soap and water as needed.
• When you move, leave the cart at the residence as they are the property of the Town.
• Extra trash carts are $60 each.

Call 919-969-5100 for cart payments, delivery, or repair. All carts are delivered directly to your address.

Our office is open from 8am to 5pm on weekdays. Turnaround time to process payment may take up to two business days.

Personal Trash Cans

• Cans must be no larger than 32-gallons.
• Cans must weigh less than 60 pounds when full.
• Cans must have tight-fitting lids that are water-tight and fly-proof.

How do I make sure my trash is picked up?

Please help us provide efficient, safe, and timely service to all residents by doing the following:

• Find your collection day using the Solid Waste Services interactive map.
• Make sure to put your trash cart behind the curb by 6am on your trash day.
• Put your cart where our crews can easily get to it. Don't block mailboxes, walkways, bike lanes, or traffic.
• Remember to take your cart from the curb by 7pm on the collection day to not get a fine.
• Put all trash (including pet waste) in full-size trash bags that are tied up.
• Put your trash bags inside your trash cart.
  • Trash bags placed outside the trash cart won't be collected.
  • Town ordinance requires that our crews not collect household trash that's not in bags and/or outside a trash can.
• Don't put too much in your cart. Overfilling it may break it when it's being emptied.

If you need bulky items picked up that aren't related to flooding

If you have large items and electronics to throw away, you must pay for them to be picked up by the town.

• Check the list of the items we collect(PDF, 25KB).
• The base fee is $15. We'll pick up three items for $15. More items are $5 each.
• Call the Public Works Department at 919-969-5100 for a collection.
  • You can pay for collection through Jotform or by calling Public Works Department at 919-969-5100
    • There is a 2.9% credit card processing fee and $0.30 transaction fee.
  • After paying, put the items behind the curb. Make sure crews can easily reach them.
  • If you normally use a rear alley for trash collections, please put your items in front of your house.
  • If you have a trash dumpster that the town empties, put your items near the dumpster. Please make sure not to put your items behind, directly in front of, or leaning on the dumpster.
• We normally collect bulky items and electronics within five business days of payment. When we have a lot of requests, it may take longer than five business days for your items to be picked up.
• Items can also be taken to one of Orange County's Waste and Recycling Centers for free

Call 919-969-5100 to pay by phone.

Our office is open from 8am to 5pm on weekdays

We pick up yard trimmings once per week at homes that have the town's curbside trash collections. Property taxes pay for this service, so you don't need to set up a special account.

Yard trimmings include:

• brush,
• limbs,
• leaves,
• grass clippings, and
• other natural yard or garden debris.

We take the yard trimmings to Orange County's Disposal Center. The county chips the yard trimmings into mulch and offers it for sale.

What do I need to know about yard trimmings carts?

You’re encouraged to use a brown Town cart for yard trimming collections:

• They are the same size as your blue Recycling cart (95-gallons)
• You can buy a Town yard trimming cart for $75. Free delivery is available.
• The replacement cost of yard trimming carts is the responsibility of the resident.

  All carts are delivered directly to your address.

• You can pay for services online through Jotform.
  • There is a 2.9% credit card processing fee and $0.30 transaction fee.
• You can also call 919-969-5100 during business hours. 
  • We are open 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. on weekdays.

Personal yard trimming cans:

• Cans must be no larger than 32-gallons.
• Cans must weigh less than 60 pounds when full.
• Cans must have tight-fitting lids that are water-tight and fly-proof.

How do I make sure my yard trimmings are picked up?

• The Town encourages home composting of yard trimmings, and information about composting is available online.
• Find your collection day using the interactive Solid Waste Services Map.
• Put all yard trimmings in a brown, Town Yard Trimmings cart. This is the safest way for our crews to collect them.
  • Small yard trimmings, such as leaves, grass clippings, and pine needles must be placed in a yard trimming cart, other rigid container, or paper lawn care bags.
  • We don't pick up plastic bags.
  • Don't put too much in your cart. Overfilling it may break it when it's emptied.
• Keep any loose piles of limbs and branches under three cubic yards. This is about the size of a small pickup truckload. Put loose yard trimmings into one pile. Don't have more than one pile.
• For options for piles that are bigger than three cubic yards, see the Large Yard Trimmings Collection section.
• All branches and limbs must be less than four feet long and ten inches in diameter.
• On the collection day, put your yard trimmings behind the curb by 6am.
• Put your cart or loose pile where our crews can easily get to them. Don't block mailboxes, walkways, bike lanes, traffic, or storm drains.
• Remember to take your cart from the curb by 7pm on the collection day to not get a fine.

What about Christmas trees and lights?

Real Christmas Trees

We pick up real Christmas trees on yard trimming collection days.

• Take off all lights, stands, ornaments, tinsel, wire, and accessories.
• Put your tree behind the curb for collection, not in the street.

If you use a dumpster for your home's trash, ask your property manager where to drop off your Christmas tree. Don't put trees inside, in front of, or leaning on dumpsters.

Fake Christmas Trees

Fake trees that won't fit inside a trash bag in your trash cart, can be picked up as a bulky item.

Lights

You can recycle Christmas lights at any Orange County Waste and Recycling Center.

Is your yard trimming pile bigger than three cubic yards, which is about the size of a pickup truckload?

If you're not sure, use the following guide. Remember to have all your yard trimmings in just one pile.  

For large piles that are bigger than three cubic yards

Knuckleboom Truck Collection
This is a large truck with a claw-like arm that scoops up piles from the side of the street. The cost is $125 per truckload.

Orange County Solid Waste Center
Residents can take one truckload of yard trimmings per day or weekend to an Orange County Waste and Recycling Center for free.

Yard materials we don't pick up

The town doesn't pick up loose leaves, large logs, stumps, crossties, or clearing debris from lots. Contractors or builders must remove these items.

Orange County takes care of recycling services in the Town. You can call or email them at 919-968-2788 or recycling@orangecountync.gov.

The University handles their own recycling services on campus.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) picks up dead animals on roads they maintain(PDF, 100KB). You can call them at 919-296-6080.

The Town picks up dead animals from the side of the roads that the Town maintains. The Town won't pick up dead animals from private property.

If you find a dead animal, please call us at 919-969-5100. We're open from 8am to 5pm on weekdays.

The Town's Holiday Schedule is available online.

Solid Waste Services Holiday Schedule

You can request that your solid waste citation be reviewed. Citations can be appealed in writing within 15 days. Use this Appeal Form(PDF, 99KB) and send it back to us. See the form for our email, mailing address, and fax number.

Dumpster Service

• The town picks up dumpsters at approved locations.
  • Click here for your collection day(s).
  • Click here for fees and more information.
• The town doesn’t sell, fix, or replace dumpsters.
• The town doesn’t pick up recycling or cardboard dumpsters.

Reminders for Residents with Dumpster Service from the Town

• Put all trash (including pet waste) in full-size trash bags that are tied up.
• Put your trash bags inside your trash dumpster. Never put them on the ground outside the dumpster. Trash bags outside the dumpster won't be collected and can cause the dumpster to not be emptied.
• Don't put bulky items or electronics inside the dumpster. See the Bulky Item & Electronics section for how to get these items picked up.
• Check out the list of items we don't collect(PDF, 25KB).
• The town doesn't pick up yard trimmings at locations with dumpsters.

Compactor Service Downtown

Each business in the downtown compactor district pays fees to use the compactor. The fees are based on the amount of waste the business makes.

View our fee and collection schedules.

Questions

• If you have questions about commercial trash, call us at 919-969-5100.
• To pay for commercial trash, call the Business Management Department at 919-968-2712