Pensacola Landfill, Dump & Recycling — Hours, Fees & What They Take
Escambia County publishes one of the most detailed fee schedules in Florida, and two lines in it are worth real money. Clean concrete and clean dirt cost nothing — rip out a driveway and the debris is free, provided there's no rebar in it. And the Palafox Transfer Station charges $12.84 a ton more than the Perdido Landfill for exactly the same garbage. Here's the whole schedule, and what the twenty-minute drive out to Beulah Road is worth.
Not one of the County's public drop-offs. Escambia County says it operates two facilities open to the public: the Perdido Landfill and the Oak Grove center. Palafox has a published rate ($57.90/ton, $12.84 more than Perdido), but call (850) 937-2160 before planning a trip here. Asbestos and special waste must go to Perdido regardless.
The County's satellite drop-off in the Oak Grove community, in the north end of Escambia County. Up to 5 cubic yards of trash per customer per day, and no tires. The county measures the load rather than weighing it, so for light, bulky material (furniture, packaging, a sofa) volume pricing usually beats the scale. For anything dense, Perdido is cheaper.
Perdido Landfill runs Monday to Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and Saturday 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Closed Sunday. That's a long week by Florida standards: a 3:30 p.m. Saturday close beats Fort Myers' noon. The Oak Grove center in the north county is open Friday and Saturday only, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
The unloading deadline is separate from closing time. If your load needs manual offloading — which most pickup and trailer loads do — the county asks you to arrive no later than 30 minutes before closing: 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday, and 3:00 p.m. on Saturday. Turning up at 3:15 on a Saturday with a full trailer is a wasted trip.
What it costs to dump in Pensacola
Escambia County's published schedule, in full:
Material
Perdido Landfill
Palafox Transfer Station
Solid waste
$45.06/ton ($11.64 min)
$57.90/ton
Yard trash
$27.62/ton ($11.64 min)
—
Clean fill, dirt & clean concrete
No fee
—
Oak Grove convenience center
$9.01 per cubic yard
—
Car & light truck tires (mixed load)
$3.90 each · max 5
—
Tires by weight
$196.25/ton
—
Mattresses
$45.06/ton · max 4
—
Special waste
$94.49/ton
Perdido only
Asbestos
$235.47/ton
Perdido only
Uncovered load
$7.02 citizen · $35.12 commercial
$31.67
Weight certification
$8.45
$8.45
High-visibility vest (required at working face)
$2.50 each
—
From Escambia County Department of Waste Services, Schedule of Rates and Fees. Confirm on (850) 937-2160 before an unusual load.
Perdido is the public landfill. The County lists only Perdido and the Oak Grove center as open to the public. Palafox's posted rate is $57.90 a ton, 28% more than Perdido, so call before counting on it.
Separate the yard trash. At $27.62/ton against $45.06 for mixed solid waste, branches and clippings cost 39% less in their own load.
Three things, and the first one is unusual enough to plan a project around:
Clean fill, clean dirt and clean concrete — no fee. Most counties charge full construction-debris rates for broken concrete; Broward charges $100 a ton for it. Escambia takes it for nothing. The catch is in the definition: clean concrete means no rebar and no welded wire fabric, and clean fill means no roots, branches or rock. Mixed in and it reverts to solid waste at $45.06/ton, so break it out properly before you load.
Residential drop-off recycling — no fee, for clean separated recyclables with no garbage contamination.
Household hazardous waste — no fee, residential households only. That covers the paint, solvents and batteries no landfill will take; see our paint disposal guide.
The fees that catch people out
The uncovered load fee — $7.02. That's a nudge rather than a punishment — but tarp it anyway, because commercial loads pay $35.12.
The high-visibility vest. One is required on the landfill working face, and the county sells them at $2.50 if you turn up without. Two dollars fifty is nothing; being turned around is not.
Household limits are hard.Five tires and four mattresses per household, and that's it. Business tires and oversized tires aren't accepted at any price — see our tire disposal guide for what to do with those.
Load ejection assistance is expensive. If your load won't come out and equipment is needed, it's $113.78 an hour with a $227.56 minimum — five times a typical tipping fee. Same rate applies if staff have to separate prohibited waste out of your load. Sort before you arrive.
Mattress processing beyond the household limit must be scheduled and approved in advance, at $113.78/hour with a $341.34 minimum.
Haul it yourself, or hire junk removal? — Pensacola
At $45.06 a ton with free concrete and free hazardous waste, self-hauling is cheap in Escambia County — the costs that bite are the ones for not sorting. Where paying someone else wins:
Haul it yourself — cheapest by a long way if you have a vehicle and can lift it. The gate rates above are the whole cost.
Junk-removal crew — they carry it out and haul it off, which avoids the $227.56 load-ejection minimum entirely if your load is awkward.
Find a drop-off near you
Enter your ZIP or city for the nearest disposal sites across Escambia, Santa Rosa and the Florida panhandle.
$45.06/ton for solid waste at the Perdido Landfill ($11.64 minimum), $27.62/ton for yard trash. The Oak Grove convenience center charges $9.01 a cubic yard ($11.64 minimum), measured by volume.
Is concrete disposal free in Escambia County?
Yes, if it's genuinely clean. Clean fill, clean dirt and clean concrete carry no fee. Clean concrete means no rebar and no welded wire fabric; clean fill means no roots, branches or rock. Anything mixed in and it's charged as solid waste at $45.06/ton.
What are the Perdido Landfill hours?
Mon–Fri 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Saturday 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., closed Sunday. Loads needing manual offloading must arrive 30 minutes before closing — 4:30 p.m. weekdays, 3:00 p.m. Saturday.
How much are tires at the Perdido Landfill?
Car and light truck tires in a mixed load are $3.90 each, maximum five per household. By weight it's $196.25/ton. Business and oversized tires aren't accepted at all.
Do I need a high-visibility vest at the Pensacola dump?
Yes — one is required on the landfill working face. The county sells them on site for $2.50 if you don't bring your own.
Is the transfer station or the landfill cheaper?
Perdido: $45.06 a ton against $57.90 posted for the Palafox Transfer Station. But Escambia County lists only Perdido and the Oak Grove center as open to the public, so call (850) 937-2160 before trying Palafox.
