Households receive unlimited collection of organics (green bins) every week on their waste collection day. Multi-residential buildings (6 units or more) receive organics according to the Multi-Residential Collection Calendar. There are no shifts to the collection schedule due to holidays except Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.
Please remember to sort your waste for collection and have it curbside by 7am (4:30am in the downtown BIA). Only curbside green bins are accepted (do not set the kitchen catcher at the curb).
Residential Collection
- Refer to the map in the Waste Collection Calendar.
- Look up your address.
- Search your address using the interactive map.
- Call 705-726-4242 (Mon–Fri, 8am–5pm) and Service Barrie staff will look up your collection day based on your address.
- Download the City's mobile app and look up your address under Your Collection Schedule. You can also opt-in for curbside collection notifications, quickly report collection concerns, access your collection schedule and much more with the City's mobile app!
Multi-Residential CollectionFor collection at multi-residential buildings (6 units or more) please refer to the Multi-Residential Collection Calendar for schedule information regarding organics carts collection.
Getting a Green Bin
The City will move to automated cart collection service for organics effective September 8, 2025. Visit Changes Coming to Curbside Collection for details.
Damaged bins can be returned to the landfill site (272 Ferndale Drive North) where they will be recycled free of charge.
Residents can get a kitchen catcher or curbside organics (green) bin for free.
Delivery
For delivery of a kitchen catcher or curbside green bin, please submit a request using ServiceBarrie.ca or contact Emterra Environmental at customercare.barrie@emterra.ca or 1-833-253-8207.
Pickup Options
Note facilities may be closed on statutory holidays.
- City Hall, 70 Collier Street (Service Barrie, first floor)
- Allandale Recreation Centre, 190 Bayview Drive
- East Bayfield Community Centre, 80 Livingstone Street East
- Peggy Hill Team Community Centre, 171 Mapleton Avenue
- City of Barrie Landfill, 272 Ferndale Drive North. Open Tuesday to Saturday, 8:30am–3:30pm. The Waste and Recycling Depot located through the scalehouse at the top of the hill is open year-round. The Recycling Depot located at the lower gate area of the landfill is open April to November only.
There is no charge for kitchen catchers or curbside green bins. Upon pickup, photo identification proving Barrie residency must be provided.Depending on eligibility*, each multi-residential property may be supplied with large collection carts as well as small, in-unit kitchen catchers to collect and transport organic material. Once the bins are full, they can be emptied into the building's large organics carts. If you don't have an in-unit green bin, please contact your property manager or site superintendent.
*If your building has not started this important diversion program, please contact your property manager or site superintendent.
The transition to automated cart collection effective September 8, 2025, will coincide with a new waste collection program for business and institutional (commercial) properties. This new program will include the introduction of organics collection for commercial properties. Registered commercial properties will be eligible for one 120L organics cart with a gravity lock.
Property owners of business/institutional properties City-wide must register for municipal waste service for business/institutional properties by March 31 to avoid service interruptions once the new automated cart waste collection program begins on September 8.
Downtown BIA Property Registration Details
Commercial Waste Collection (Outside the BIA) Registration Details
Accepted Materials & Bin Liners
Please use the Waste Item Lookup Tool to look up specific items if not listed below. Organics bins must not exceed 20kgs (45lbs) per bin when placed out for collection.
Did you know? Effective May 1, 2024, pet waste is accepted in your green bin! Dog waste, plant-based kitty litter and bedding for small animals is accepted in the green bin. Pet waste must be placed in certified compostable bags.
Acceptable materials in the green bin:
- All food scraps and leftovers
- Coffee grounds and filters, tea bags
- Cooking oils and grease
- Dried flowers
- Eggs and eggshells
- Fast food drink trays
- Hair, pet hair
- House plants
- Fast food drink trays
- Kitty litter (plant based)
- Meat, bones, rice and dairy products
- Microwave popcorn bags
- Muffin paper cups
- Pastas, breads
- Paper egg cartons
- Paper cups
- Paper plates, napkins, tissues
- Pet waste
- Popsicle sticks, toothpicks
- Pumpkins, garden fruit & vegetable waste
- Small animal bedding
- Soiled newspaper, paper towels
- Vegetables and fruits
- Wood wine corks
- Wood ashes (cold)
Do not place yard waste in your organics (green bin) containers. Yard waste items are collected in a separate compartment of the collection truck. Organics carts must not exceed 20 kgs (45lbs) each for collection.Highlighted unacceptable materials in the green bin:
- Ceramics
- Construction and demolition waste
- Dead animals
- Diapers and hygiene products
- Drinking straws
- Dryer lint and dust
- Plastic bags or biodegradable bags
- Medical waste (bandages, gauze)
- Hazardous waste
- Recyclables
- Sod, soil or rocks
- Styrofoam
- Textiles
- Treated wood
- Vacuum bag and contents
- Yard waste
Green bins must not exceed 20 kgs (45lbs) each for collection.
Line your kitchen catcher or curbside green bin with certified compostable bin liners/bags, which must include one of the certified compostable logos below. Both the individual bags and the package will be marked with one or both of these logos:
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Other options for lining your kitchen catcher:
- paper bags
- newspaper
- popcorn and pet food bags without plastic liners
- paper leaf and yard waste bags
- boxboard such as cereal and cracker boxes
Tip: Disposable coffee cups make great containers for food scraps/peels. When preparing meals, just drop the filled cup into your organics bin!
Non-compostable plastic bags are NOT accepted in Barrie’s organics program. Plastic bags labelled only as “bio-degradable”, “degradable” or “oxo” degradable are also NOT accepted in the organics program. These bags are not acceptable at the composting facility that accepts Barrie’s organics material because they contaminate the finished compost.
Frequently Asked Questions
The City encourages and appreciate residents that compost on their own property – that’s a great way to reduce waste! There are organic materials, however, that still should go in the organics cart that are not appropriate for a backyard composter. This includes materials such as grease and fat, meat, fish and shellfish, dairy products, nuts and shells, cooked food, pet waste, and food-soiled paper products. These materials should be placed in the green bin.
Diapers are not accepted in Barrie's organics program because the processing facility does not accept these this material; they are difficult and costly to process.
Residents can dispose of up to two clear bags of diapers per week for free at the landfill, with a maximum weight of 20kg/bag, from May 1 to October 31 each year.
Soiled diapers are garbage items. Tips to help mitigate odour:
- sprinkle a bit of baking soda in the bottom of your garbage can
- be sure your garbage can has a proper lid & is securely sealed
Garbage and organics are collected by a “split” collection truck. The same collection truck will hold both materials however it does NOT mix the materials together. These trucks are split this way to make the collection more efficient instead of having one designated truck for each material type.
The split collection truck has two separated compartments for two different types of materials. The collector places the garbage material into one compartment of the truck, and the organics into the other. Although it may appear that these items are being mixed together after you spent time separating them, the materials are completely separated and do not get mixed with each other.
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The collection truck is split into two compartments. Organics and garbage do not mix together. Per the City's waste contract, curbside organics material is transported to a third-party processing facility (arranged by Emterra). This is a specially designed processing facility where microscopic bacteria digest the material and the result is rich and valuable compost. This material is then sold by the third-party processer.
The compost the City sells at the landfill site is generated from Barrie’s leaf & yard waste collection.
- Wrap food waste in newspaper, boxboard or certified compostable liners before placing in the bin.
- Clean your green bin regularly and keep the lid tightly closed.
- Empty the small kitchen bin into the large curbside bin often, before food starts decomposing.
- Freeze food scraps in acceptable bin liners before placing in the curbside bin.
- Place your bin out for collection every week on your scheduled day, even if it’s only half full.
The organics collection program was extended to eligible properties beginning in 2017.
Participation in the multi-residential organics collection program is mandatory for all residents in order for your building to receive municipal garbage collection services (Council Motion 15-G-223).
If your building does not participate in organics diversion, please contact your property manager or site superintendent.
Only plant-based kitty litters will be accepted. Plant-based kitty litter includes litter made from wood shaving/pellets, wheat, corn, paper pellets, grass or grass seed, etc. It does not include traditional clay litter.
Pet waste must be placed in certified compostable bags, which are marked with one of these logos:
ImageOrganics (green bin) collection is sent to a separate facility that can process pet waste and other organic matter, to be turned into compost. The compost sold at the landfill site will continue to be generated from Barrie’s leaf & yard waste collection.
Please remember to sort your waste for collection and have it curbside by 7am on your collection day/week. If you believe your collection of organics, garbage or yard waste was missed, please contact Emterra at customercare.barrie@emterra.ca or 1-833-253-8207.