Universal Recycling and Composting Ordinance
Denver's Composting Mandate,
Explained
Denver requires composting and recycling. Melly's Recycling handles everything else.
Denver's Universal Recycling and Composting Ordinance, also called Waste No More, requires most Denver businesses and apartment buildings to offer compost and recycling alongside trash. Citations reach $999 per offense, and each continuing day counts separately. Melly's Recycling sets up everything the city requires and keeps you compliant, so you never have to read the ordinance yourself.
WHAT IS WASTE NO MORE
Waste No More started as a 2022 ballot measure Denver voters approved. In September 2025 the City Council finalized the rules and set enforcement for September 1, 2026. The official name is the Universal Recycling and Composting Ordinance, or URCO.
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In plain terms: if your property makes food waste and it is not a single home, you have to offer compost and recycling next to your trash, label it, train people to use it, and keep a written plan on file. That is the whole mandate. The rest of this page breaks down who it hits, what you have to do, and how to get it done.
Does this apply to you?
Three groups have to comply. If you are in any of them and you sit inside Denver city limits, the September 1 deadline applies to you.
Restaurants and
Food Businesses
Restaurants,
Cafes, Bars,
grocers,
commissaries.
Permitted
Events
Festivals,
concerts,
races,
markets.
Multifamily Buildings
8 or more units.
Apartments,
condos,
mixed-use properties.
Not sure if you count? Townhomes and rowhomes on a Denver Solid Waste account are not covered. Everyone else in these categories is.
TIMELINE
How we got here
Sep 1,
2026
Enforcement
begins.
Sep 2025
City Council finalizes
the rules and locks in the
enforcement date.
2022
Denver voters pass
Waste No Morewith 70
percent support.
What you're required to do
Denver's ordinance has real rules behind every requirement: sizing, placement, signage, language, filing, and deadlines. Miss one detail and you're exposed. We put all of it in one plain-English handbook that walks you through every step.
Every requirement, every form, every deadline.
WHAT GOES IN EACH BIN
Sorting is where most properties fail. Denver's compost stream is strict, and one contaminated load can get the whole bin rejected. Here is what actually belongs where.
Compost
(food scraps only)
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Food scraps and yard trimmings. Fruit and vegetable scraps, meat, bones, dairy, bread, coffee grounds. Liners must be 3-gallon CMA-certified compostable bags, and that is the only liner permitted. No plastic, no paper, and no compostable serviceware, even the certified kind.
Recycling
Clean plastic bottles and tubs, aluminum and tin cans, cardboard, paper, and clean glass. Empty and dry. No food residue, no plastic bags.
Landfill (everything else)
Plastic bags, styrofoam, chip bags, plastic-lined cups, compostable serviceware, and anything greasy. When in doubt, throw it out. A wrong item in the compost bin is worse than a right item in the trash.
The number one reason loads get rejected is plastic, paper, and compostable serviceware in the compost bin. Melly's Recycling signage and training are built to prevent exactly this.
What happens if you don't?
Fine Ladder
$999+
per day - stacking
$500
$150
first citation
minimum fine
Citations run $150 for a first offense, $500 for a second, and $999 for a third and each one after. Because every continuing day of non-compliance counts as a separate offense, penalties stack fast. The goal is simple: be set up before anyone comes looking, so you never see a citation at all.
What Melly's handles for you
Everything the ordinance requires, done and maintained by us. You get one point of contact and a property that passes.
Your capacity math.
Service capacity calculated in gallons, the figure the ordinance actually uses, and verified against your hauler agreement.
Your bins.
Right-sized trash, recycling, and compost containers, placed and labeled at every disposal point.
Your signage.
Compliant signs at every bin showing what goes where, in English and Spanish.
Your training.
Clear sorting instructions for staff and tenants, plus onboarding for new hires and move-ins.
Your Waste Diversion Plan.
Written, kept on site, and filed with the city at renewal, with records handled year-round.
See what your property needs in two minutes.
Frequently asked questions
OFFICIAL CITY SOURCES
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Denver URCO overview: denvergov.org/UniversalRecycling
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Draft URCO Rules and Regulations for buildings and food waste producers
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City fact sheets for multifamily and food businesses
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Questions for the city: UniversalRecycling@denvergov.org
