Another sign of spring as yard waste collection program returns

It’s that time of year again! With the return of spring comes a return of Waterloo Region’s seasonal yard waste collection program.

It started back up in Cambridge and Waterloo the week of Mar. 25 and it will begin in Kitchener and the townships the week of Apr. 1.

Despite the name, not everything you clean-up from your backyard can be placed in the yard waste bags.

Deanna Dakin is project manager with the Region of Waterloo’s Waste Management Division and said only organic material like leaves, dead plants, and small branches can go in the bags.

“If you’re using yard waste bags, it’s really anything [organic] that can go into the bag as long as it does not exceed 23 kg, it’s okay to be collected,” said Dakin. “What we don’t want is patio stones in there, or broken concrete steps — it’s really just your leaves and twigs that can fit into the bag.”

Anything else, like broken pots or garden stones, needs to be disposed of appropriately and you can always check the proper way to get rid of something by using the region’s Waste Whiz app.

Dakin said larger branches can be collected curbside as long as they’re cut and less than 3 feet in length and 3 inches in diameter, weigh less than 23 kg, and are bundled.

She said it’s important that only organic yard waste is put into the collection bags because they get transported to the Cambridge waste management facility.

“That’s where we compost this material,” explained Dakin. “It gets chipped into smaller pieces and then put into long rows to compost. Eventually over the 12-month period, it turns into this wonderful soil amendment that residents can pick up for free in the spring.”

Dakin said that soil amendment is available now at both waste transfer stations.

In 2023, the Region of Waterloo diverted about 19,000 tonnes of yard waste material to the collection program.

If you don’t have a yard waste bag, which can be purchased at local grocery and hardware stores, you can still put yard waste curbside in a garbage can as long as it meets certain requirements and has a yard waste sticker or bright ribbon on it.

The collection program runs bi-weekly until the end of November and you can learn more about it by clicking here.