Chicago, Ill., Mun. Code ch. 7-28 § 7-28-710

(a) It shall be unlawful for any person to place, leave, dump, or permit to accumulate any garbage or trash, including any animal feed, food, food waste, or other foodstuffs, or any dead animals or waste vegetable matter of any kind, in any building, structure, premises, land, or waterway.


Any person who violates this section shall be fined not less than $300 nor more than $600 for each offense. Each day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate and distinct offense to which a separate fine shall apply.


(b) Nothing in this section shall prohibit the composting of organic waste or land application of composted organic waste in accordance with Sections 7-28-715 and Chapter 11-4 of this Code. For the purposes of this section and Section 7-28-715 , the following definitions apply:


“Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Streets and Sanitation or the Chief Sustainability Officer. When used in the plural, the term means both commissioners.


"Compost" means the humus-like product of the process of composting organic waste, which may be used as a soil conditioner.


"Composting" means a controlled biological treatment process by which microorganisms or worms decompose the organic fraction of waste, producing compost.


"Composting material" means organic waste undergoing composting.


"Composting operation" means all composting activities conducted on a site, including all composting material, stored organic waste and end-product compost located on any site at any one time. “Composting operation” shall not include the collection of organic waste under Section 7-28-715 (8).


"Food scrap" means garbage that is (i) capable of being composted, (ii) separated by the generator from other waste, including non-compostable garbage; and (iii) managed separately from other waste, including non-compostable garbage. Food scrap includes packaging, utensils, and food containers composed of readily biodegradable material in accordance with the ASTM D6400 standard required for use under Section 3.197 of the Illinois Environmental Protection Act, codified at 415 ILCS 5/3.197. For purposes of this definition, the term "garbage" has the meaning ascribed to the term in Section 11-4-120 of this Code.


"In-vessel" means composting which is conducted entirely within a fully enclosed container, with no opening having a dimension greater than 1/4 inch in any direction.


"Landscape waste" means grass or shrubbery cuttings, leaves, tree limbs and other materials accumulated as a result of the care of lawns, shrubbery, vines and trees, and includes any discarded fruits, vegetables and other vegetative material or crop residue generated in the care of a garden. The term "landscape waste" does not include soil other than incidental soil (e.g., soil attached to sod or attached to other materials accumulated as a result of the care of lawns, shrubbery, vines, trees or a garden).


"Limited organic waste" means organic waste, other than landscape waste, which does not include: fish; fish products; poultry; poultry products; meat; meat products; eggs (excluding egg shells); cheese, butter or other dairy products; fat; grease; oil or oily food; cat, dog, or other animal excreta; animal feed losses or animal bedding; colored or glossy paper; sawdust from pressure-treated plywood or lumber; diseased or insect-infested houseplants or soil; or biodegradable or compostable plastic.


"Operator" means any person who is engaged in a garden composting operation.


"Organic waste" means food scrap, landscape waste, uncontaminated wood waste or other non- hazardous carbonaceous waste that is collected and processed separately from the rest of the municipal waste stream.


"Owner" means any person who has legal title to any premises or structure where a garden composting operation is conducted.


"Uncontaminated wood waste" means untreated, unpainted and unvarnished wood.


"Vector" means any living agent, other than human, capable of transmitting, directly or indirectly, an infectious disease.


(Prior code § 99-61.7; Amend Coun. J. 7-31-90, p. 19384; Amend Coun. J. 4-11-07, p. 102577, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 7-28-10, p. 97912, § 7; Amend Coun. J. 11-16-11, p. 14596, Art. II, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 7-29-15, p. 4110, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 7-17-24, p. 14378, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 9-25-25, p. 31846, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 12-20-25, p. 39283, Art. III, § 7)