GreenCart

GreenCart material is collected every week on your collection day.  

Find your GreenCart collection day.

 Acceptable GreenCart Items

GreenCart acceptable items  608KB

• Bread, toast, cereal, baked goods & pizza
• Cake, cookies, pie, muffins & candies
• Coffee grounds & filters, teabags
• Dairy products, cheese & yogurt (no containers)
• Eggs & egg shells
• Fruit
• Meat, fish & shellfish (including bones)
• Nuts & nutshells
• Pasta, couscous, potatoes, rice, oatmeal, flour & grains
• Vegetables, corn cobs & husks, salads
• Sauces, mayonnaise, salad dressing, syrups, peanut butter, jams & jellies (no containers)
• Fats & oils, lard, gravy, butter & margarine (no containers)
• Shredded paper
• Soiled paper towels, paper napkins, facial tissues, paper towel rolls & toilet paper rolls
• Soiled paper food packaging, cardboard egg cartons, pizza liners, paper plates, paper take-out food trays & containers
• Houseplants
• Hair, pet hair, feathers, nail clippings & dryer lint
• Popsicle sticks, toothpicks, wood chips, sawdust & cold wood ashes (in paper bags)

To determine whether paper products are compostable and can go into the GreenCart -- give them a rip. If the paper product is difficult to rip, or if there is visible plastic or metallic lining, it cannot go in the GreenCart.

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Not Accepted (these items go in the Garbage)

• Plastic bags & containers
• Animal waste & bedding, including litter & droppings
• Cigarette butts & ashes
• Compostable chip bags
• Dead animals
• Diapers
• Dirt, earth, soil, sod & rocks
• Disposable mop sheets
• Dryer sheets
• Feminine hygiene products 
• Floss, make-up sponges, cotton swabs, cotton balls & pads
• Medical waste
• Sanitizing wipes
• String, twine
• Textiles (clothing, shoes, etc.)
• Tree stumps
• Vacuum bags/dust
• Wine corks
• Wood (treated or large pieces)

• PLA or BPI certified plastic resin food packaging, plates, cups, and cutlery:

  • Polylactic Acid (PLA) plastic resin food packaging, plates, cups and cutlery (including those with the BPI certification logo) are not accepted in the GreenCart. They are only accepted in the garbage.
  • The composting facility consistently finds this material does not break down in the standard 21-day composting cycle. As well, these items look like traditional plastic plates, cups and cutlery, which can lead to confusion among residents.
  • If you are purchasing items for special events, Halton Region encourages the purchase of molded fibre (paper) products, paper cups and paper plates, as these materials are accepted in the GreenCart. Wooden forks are accepted in the GreenCart as well.

Remember: No plastic, glass or metal. Certified compostable bags and paper bags can be used and are available from retailers. You can also use newspaper, cardboard or paper towels to line your Kitchen Catcher or GreenCart.  GreenCart material in regular plastic bags, oxo-biodegradable bags or any bag without the BPI compostable logo will not be collected.

By excluding regular plastics (including diapers) and pet waste (containing unwanted pathogens), we provide the composting facility with a clean material source, resulting in a higher quality final compost product.

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