Yard Waste | City of Medicine Hat

If you have a household garbage cart (grey cart) for residential waste collection at your home, you can take part in the seasonal yard waste collection program.

Seasonal collection

We collect yard waste from spring to fall on the same day as your regular garbage collection.

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The annual Residential Waste Collection Calendar includes the pre-determined start and end dates for the Yard Waste Collection program.

Please note that cool temperatures may warrant a later start or earlier end to the program.

Request yard waste collection

For a one-time service fee of $50, we will deliver a green vented 95-gallon organic waste cart to the front of your property. The fee will be applied to your utility account and can only be authorized by the current utility account holder.

Request yard waste cart

Instructions for successful collection

Participating in the program is easy! Write your address on the cart lid to ensure it remains at the address it belongs to.

What can go in the organic waste cart?

The green organic waste cart is, currently, for yard waste materials only. Contaminated carts will not be collected. Acceptable yard waste material includes:

Grass clippings
Leaves
Plant trimmings
Weeds
Cut flowers
Twigs, branches and limbs up to 2 in (5 cm) in diameter and 3 ft (1 m) in length

Prepare the cart for collection

Place yard waste loosely in the organic waste cart, not in plastic bags.

All waste must fit inside the carts provided and the lids should close completely. Material placed on top or outside of the carts will not be collected.

Set your cart out properly

Roll your organic waste cart out to your assigned set out location before 7 a.m. on your designated collection day.
Set carts apart and away from obstacles so collection trucks can empty them. If you can easily walk around each cart, then there is enough room for the trucks to collect your contents.
Return your cart to your property within 24 hours of collection. Please see Waste Bylaw #1805 for more info.

What cannot go in the organic waste cart?

Contaminating an organic waste cart ends with the whole collection truck contents being landfilled instead of being composted. Please keep these items out of your green organics cart:

Tree stumps
Rocks, soil and sod
Landscape fabric
Concrete and brick
Diseased branches, noxious weeds, Elm tree wood
Plastic plant pots
Plastic bagged material
Garbage
Old garden hoses
Pet waste
Batteries
Propane tanks
Nails, screws and metal

Dealing with yard waste without an organic waste cart

You can bring grass clippings and other organic yard waste materials to the Waste Management Facility year-round. Disposal fees may apply as noted in Waste Bylaw #1805

Yard Waste Management at Home

Effective yard waste management reduces waste and recycles organic materials. Although yard waste is biodegradable, landfills do not get the oxygen and water needed for breakdown. Yard waste is better used for enhancing our gardens and landscapes.

Incorporate the 3 Rs into your yard maintenance activities:

Reduce yard waste generation
Reuse trimmings on site
Recycle organic products (compost and mulch) back into the landscapes

Try the following suggestions to cut the waste generated in your landscaping efforts. You'll save time and money.

Grasscycling

Mow without a bag and leave the grass clippings on the lawn. This will save time, energy and valuable landfill space. Plus, your lawn will love the nutrients! Grasscycling is a combination of common-sense watering, mowing and fertilizing practices. The frequency of watering and mowing will depend on the type of grass in your yard.

Mulching

Mulch is any organic material such as wood chips, grass clippings, leaves and compost that is spread over the surface of the soil. Mulch locks in moisture, reduces soil temperatures and restricts weeds by blocking sunlight. In winter, mulch serves as a blanket for plants by maintaining constant soil temperature. Mulching is also one of the cheapest water conservation techniques.

Composting

Backyard composting provides an almost constant source of free fertilizer and soil conditioner. Benefits include:

Improving the structure of the soil
Maintaining healthy plant growth
Helping conserve water
Removing organics from garbage

Leaf management

In the fall, tree leaves are the main contributor to yard waste. Consider mowing, mulching and composting to keep leaves out of the garbage.