Columbus, OH · Issue Report

Trash & illegal dumping in Columbus

The read computed from 14,054 reports · JAN 2025 – JUN 2026

Columbus logged about 14,000 trash and dumping reports in the last 18 months. That is about one of every 5 complaints filed with code enforcement. Almost all of them carry low severity scores. These are quality-of-life reports, not emergencies. No neighborhood is spared, but rates run highest in Weinland Park. Addresses with trash and dumping reports are about twice as likely to also have encampment reports on file.

1 in 5
share of all reports
14,054 reports on file
Steady
2026 vs same months 2025
+2% so far this year
March
peak reporting month
about 1.4× a typical month
Get it handled

Want it fixed?

Report it to 311 with the exact address or the alley location, and a photo if you can. Say whether it is a one-time dump or a chronic overflow, because chronic cases build the enforcement record.

For your own bulk items, the city collects them on schedule. Booking a bulk pickup is free and beats the alley.

Know the rules

What counts?

An overflowing shared dumpster is the property owner’s problem, not the tenants’. Report the address it serves.

Dumped mattresses and furniture in an alley are enforceable wherever they sit. Trash that attracts rats gets treated as the more serious problem it is.

When it gets reported

Share of the year's reports landing in each month, corrected for how many times each month appears in the data window.
January · 6% of the year's reportsJFebruary · 7% of the year's reportsFMarch · 11% of the year's reportsMApril · 10% of the year's reportsAMay · 9% of the year's reportsMJune · 10% of the year's reportsJJuly · 10% of the year's reportsJAugust · 9% of the year's reportsASeptember · 10% of the year's reportsSOctober · 7% of the year's reportsONovember · 5% of the year's reportsNDecember · 6% of the year's reportsD

Reports peak in March at about one and a half times the volume of a typical month. The quietest month is November. A quiet autumn does not mean the problem went away. Reporting drops citywide in cold months.

All trash and dumping reports by month latest month: 959
959 JAN '25 JUN '26

Where it's most reported

Neighborhoods ranked by rate, meaning each category's share of the neighborhood's reports against its citywide share, so big neighborhoods don't win just for being big. Only rates with enough reports behind them are listed.
#1Weinland Park1.7×205 reports
Low Moderate Severe Critical
Open the live map filtered to trash & illegal dumping →
Each dot is one report, colored by severity. This embed shows 3,000 of the 14,054 reports, keeping every severe and critical one. The live map adds search, filters, and the Block Report.

Often reported with

What else shows up at the same addresses. Address-level comparison, so this reads as a building-quality signal, not a coincidence of one phone call.
EncampmentsAddresses with trash and dumping reports are about twice as likely to also have encampment reports on file.→

What people describe

The words that come up most in these reports, from the complaint narratives. Counts are reports mentioning each phrase.
trash7,564 debris2,263 solid waste1,365 alley1,445 bags763 furniture869 dumpster741 items739

Common questions

How do I report trash and illegal dumping in Columbus?

Call 311 or use the app with the address or nearest address to the pile, plus a photo. For a shared dumpster that always overflows, name the property it belongs to. The owner is responsible for capacity.

Are trash and dumping reports in Columbus going up?

They are steady. So far this year Columbus has logged about the same number of trash and dumping reports as the same months last year.

Where are trash and dumping reports most common in Columbus?

Rates run highest in Weinland Park, comparing each neighborhood's share of reports against the citywide share. No neighborhood is entirely without them.

Looking at a specific address?

Get the full Block Report, covering what's been reported at that exact address, the same building, and chronic neighbors within a third of a mile.

Search an address →
Source & method

What counts here. Reports of overflowing dumpsters, piled or dumped trash, mattresses and furniture in alleys, and trash conditions that attract rodents. Animal waste complaints are included here.

Data comes from official City of Columbus code enforcement records (Accela portal + ArcGIS REST API). Reports are categorized by keyword matching on complaint narratives and city record types, so counts are reports filed, not verified conditions, and automated matching can misfile individual records. The data window covers JAN 2025 – JUN 2026, so month-of-year patterns will sharpen as full years accrue.