Garbage, Recycling, and Food Waste

We collect food waste each and every week.

Use the District-provided kitchen catcher (provided one time only) to keep your food waste until you can move it to your curbside food waste Green Bin.

• As with all curbside waste collection, please have your bins to the curb no later than 8:00 a.m. on collection days, and not the night earlier.
• Clean you bin regularly to reduce odours which could be appealing to wildlife.
• Store your bins in a secure location, such as a locked garage or shed between collection days.

Here's What's Accepted

• Food scraps and leftovers including cooked and raw meat and chicken, pork, fish, and beef bones
• Fruit and vegetables
• Tissues, paper towels, and napkins
• Food soiled compostable packaging, including greasy pizza boxes

About your Green Bins and kitchen catchers

Your curbside Green Bin must be:

• Rigid plastic no more than 57 litres of capacity.
• No more than 23 kg. (or 50 lbs) in weight.
• Have a secure, hinged lid. (for suppressing odours and deterring access for wildlife.)
• Green in colour and readily identifiable as a food waste bin.
• You may only place one Green Bin to the curb for collection each collection day.

Green bins and kitchen catchers can be lined with:

• Newspaper
• Brown paper bags (yard waste bags or paper lunch bags)
• 100% paper food bags (sugar and flour bags, for example)
• Compostable bags
• You do not have to use a bag or liner at all - just throw your food right in!

Please ensure that your compostable bags say ‘compostable’ on the bag or box. Plastic bags and bags labeled ‘biodegradable’ are not accepted in your green bin. 

Your food waste will not be collected if unacceptable materials are in your Green Bin.

 Regular garbage pick-up occurs on alternating weeks from your recycling collection days.

• As with all curbside waste collection, please have your bins to the curb no later than 8:00 a.m. on collection days, and not the night earlier.
• Clean you bin regularly to reduce odours which could be appealing to wildlife.
• Store your bins in a secure location, such as a locked garage or shed between collection days.

Collection information

• Garbage is collected biweekly
• All bagged garbage must be in a bin
• All waste must be tied in a garbage bag, not loose in your bin
• A maximum of two garbage bins are accepted unless marked with a garbage tag, available for purchase from the Kitimat Municipal Office at $3 each.
• The District recognizes medical conditions can cause more garbage in a home. Residents in properties that receive curbside collection may apply for a medical exemption to receive additional, free garbage tags for their curbside garbage. The form is under our Landfill and Waste Collection Forms on our applications page
• Bins must be at the curb by 8:00 a.m. on your collection day, and not set out the night before
• Sharp objects (like broken glass) must be safely contained in your garbage bin. Consider putting sharp objects in a cardboard box, and then placing the box in your garbage bag.

About your garbage bins

• Garbage bins must be plastic, with a removable lid
• Bins cannot exceed 121 L and 50 lbs.
• You may place up to two bins to the curb, unless you have purchased and placed a garbage tag on the additional waste to be collected, up to a maximum of two additional bins. Tags available at the Kitimat Municipal Office, at $3 each.
• Garbage must be stored in a secure location until pickup day, like a locked garage or shed.

 Recycling collection occurs on alternating weeks from your garbage collection days.

• As with all curbside waste collection, please have your bins to the curb no later than 8:00 a.m. on collection days, and not the night earlier.
• Clean you bin regularly to reduce odours which could be appealing to wildlife.
• Store your bins in a secure location, such as a locked garage or shed between collection days.

About your recycling bins

A blue bin was provided by the District for the program launch and is to stay with the house, even when you move.  

• Blue bins must not exceed 90L capacity.
• No more than 23 kg. (Or 50 lbs)
• Recyclables must be emptied and rinsed.
• Recyclables must be placed loosely in the blue bin, not in a plastic bag.
• You may place as many containers as you wish for recycling collection, there are no limits.

What is accepted at the curb

• Paper cups
• Cartons
• Empty aerosol containers
• Steel and aluminum cans and lids
• Aluminum foil and foil - containers
• Plastic jugs with screw tops (place tops back on rinsed-out containers)
• Plastic clamshells
• Plastic containers and lids (place lids back on rinsed-out containers)
• Plastic trays and tops
• Plastics cups and lids

Yard waste is collected every other Monday from May to November.

• If your curbside collection is on Tuesday or Thursday, your yard waste collection day is represented by a green leaf.
• If your curbside collection is on a Wednesday or Friday, your yard waste collection day is represented by a maple leaf.

A maximum of six (6) bins/bags are allowed for collection. Please set your yard waste out by 8:00 a.m. on your collection day.  Do not set it out the night before.

Our curbside collection calendar is on our home WayLessWaste page here.

About your yard waste bins

Acceptable yard waste containers include:

• Plastic bins (max. 121 L and 23 kg/50 lbs)
• Paper yard waste bags (max. 121 L and 23 kg/50 lbs)

Plastic bags are not allowed for yard waste collection, even if they are labeled compostable or biodegradable.

Invasive Species (And How to Manage Them)

Invasive species can threaten biodiversity, increase soil erosion, and can even destroy infrastructure like concrete and asphalt.

Please do not dispose of any invasive plant by dumping trimmings or pulled plants in your yard, in the bush, or elsewhere. Proper disposal is required to help prevent further spread.

What should you do if you have invasive species on your property?

• Remove it (preferably including the roots) and put it in a plastic bag.
• If you just have a little, put it in your curbside garbage can. The goal is for it to be buried in the landfill in a bag.
• Bring it directly to the landfill (let the attendant know that you have invasive weeds and they will direct you to where to deposit it)

Do not put invasive species in with your yard waste.

Click here for common invasive species in British Columbia.

Report suspected invasive species to WayLessWaste@kitimat.ca, please include a photo and location.