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Environmental Health

Solid Waste Program

The Solid Waste Program ensures all residences and businesses in San Francisco subscribe to adequate and licensed refuse collection service. The program also ensures that refuse collection is handled in a manner that protects health and safety.

Principal Activities and Services

  • Regulate/permit San Francisco's solid waste facilities including transfer stations and sanitary landfills.
  • Inspect refuse collection vehicles.
  • Provide route and service disputes adjudication.
  • Enforce mandatory requirements for residential and commercial garbage service.
  • Work with federal contracting agencies to ensure that federal contracts for refuse collection harmonize with city laws and regulations.
  • Evaluate proposed recycling and waste diversion programs to ensure compliance with state and local solid waste laws and regulations.

Refuse Liens

The Department is authorized to place a lien on property when owners fail to maintain or pay for garbage collection service bills. For more information about the lien program and what to do if a lien has been put on your property, click here. (pdf)

Solid Waste Facilities

As the Local Enforcement Agency for the California Integrated Waste Management Board, the Department is authorized to permit and inspect solid waste facilities. The Solid Waste program responds to public complaints regarding solid waste facilities and abandoned landfill, works with federal contracting agencies to ensure that federal and non-federal contracts for refuse collection harmonizes with city laws and regulation, and evaluates proposed recycling and waste diversion programs to ensure compliance with state and local solid waste laws and regulations.

Making a Complaint

To make a complaint about illegal dumping of garbage, click here.

Related Agency

California Integrated Waste Management Board