Illegal Dumping & Trash Problems

Keep Santa Barbara beautiful by reporting illegal dumping and trash problems.

The placement of unwanted items in locations other than the owners trash container is considered dumping. The City has solutions to prevent and deal with illegal dumping and trash problems. See the sections below.

Dumping on Streets & Sidewalks

Illegal dumping is a blight on our City Streets. Mattresses and couches left by midnight dumpers appear overnight. Contact Us and the Code Enforcement Officer will come out to locate the source of the material and resolve the situation. Managers of multi-unit complexes should provide disposal for their tenants to prevent dumping. See Garbage for details.

Abandoned Shopping Carts

Shopping carts are ultimately the responsibility of the business that provides them to their customers.
The best thing you can do for permanent resolution of the problem is to call the businesses and provide feedback on how their shopping carts are impacting your neighborhood. There are many technological solutions for retrieval that have worked in other communities, and they are more likely to implement them if they perceive it as a serious problem. For short term resolution you can call the California Shopping Cart Retrieval Corporation at 1-800-252-4613. If none of these methods solve the problem, Contact Us.

Dumping in Your Trash Container

Locking dumpsters are available for commercial customers. Call your waste hauler to get one.
If this will not work in your situation, it helps if you can identify the source of the dumped material.
If you feel comfortable approaching the dumper, talk to them about it first. Some dumpers do not think that their dumping impacts other people or is noticed. Simply telling them to stop may resolve the situation. If this doesn't work or you are afraid to approach them, Contact Us and the Code Enforcement Officer will come out to determine a solution.

People in Dumpsters

Locking dumpsters are available for commercial customers. Call your waste hauler to get one.

Overflowing Trash Containers

Overflowing trash is often due to inadequate refuse service. The City can require the property owner to increase service to prevent this problem. Contact Us for enforcement of City codes.

Junk on Private Property

To report accumulations of junk on private property call Zoning Enforcement at 564-5578.

Litter

Looking Good Santa Barbara is a City sponsored community organization dedicated to keeping Santa Barbara a beautiful and unique place to live, work and visit. The mission of the organization is to reduce litter, eliminate visual pollution (like graffiti), promote recycling and provide education on litter reduction and recycling practices to children as well as adults and businesses. Visit the Looking Good webpage for litter remedies.