It is so sad to me that this lawsuit-happy society has made a lot of recycling impossible. Dumps and dumpsters used to offer most anything one needed to build things like coops and runs. I have read of people building ships and homes from stuff from dumpsters in NYC. Now we cannot plunder at all, it must all be buried. What a waste, and this is supposed to be waste management.... If I haul stuff to the dump, someone is right there to be sure I put it in the right place, and don't plunder. Builders/contractors discard huge amounts of roofing, siding, wood, etc., daily, and pay to discard it. So sad. No wonder contractors are ok with our scrounging their scraps; otherwise, they must pay to throw them away.
OTOH, an unspoken rule around here is, if you live in town and set it by the trash cans, where there is garbage pickup, it is free choice. I have put broken down lawn mowers, childrens' outgrown toys, unwanted furniture, etc. by the trash cans, and they are usually gone within 24 hours. At times, people have even knocked on the door to ask if it was ok to take them.