Question: Is it permitted to remove the garbage from one’s home on Yom Tov? Is it permitted to transfer garbage from the backyard or garage to the front of the house so that it can be taken away by the city’s garbage collectors?
Discussion: There are two possible issues that need to be dealt with: muktzeh and the melachah of hotza’ah on Yom Tov.
Muktzeh
As will be explained below, it is prohibited to move muktzeh on Yom Tov, just as on Shabbos, unless done for preparing food. However, even on Shabbos, it is permitted to move a muktzeh item which is repulsive and causing discomfort in its present location.119 Therefore, although the garbage is muktzeh, if it has a foul odor or an unseemly appearance, it may be moved to a place where it does not cause discomfort. This, however, would not apply to permit moving muktzeh from in back of the house to in front of the house to be picked up by the city’s garbage collectors, unless it is causing discomfort in its present location.
Hotza’ah
If the garbage is being transported from one halachic domain to another, it is subject to the melachah of hotza’ah. However, the Poskim120 consider the removal of trash from the house to be a legitimate Yom Tov need, since leaving it in the house causes unpleasantness, which interferes with the enjoyment of Yom Tov. (This is not comparable to the case of transporting a house key which, as explained above, is subject to debate amongst the Poskim. In that case, one does not really care where the key is; his goal is simply to ensure that his belongings remain secure. In our case, however, one specifically wishes to move the garbage to a different location. Therefore, moving it is considered to be a positive Yom Tov purpose.121)
Hotza’ah, as well, would be permitted only for garbage that is presently in the house; it would be prohibited to transport garbage which is already outside of the house. Therefore, if the garbage is already in the garage or backyard, one may not transfer it to an unenclosed area in front of the house for the city’s garbage collectors, since this serves no Yom Tov need whatsoever.
119 See Shulchan Aruch 338:8, 521:3.
120 Orchos Rabbeinu (5753 ed.) II, page 122; The Laws of Yom Tov, page 122, citing R’ Chaim Pinchas Scheinberg; Chut Shani, p. 75; Shevet HaLevi X:79.
121 See Avnei Hamakom 113:3.