Organics - Green Cart

The green cart is used to collect organic materials. Vents promote air flow inside the cart. A grate inside the cart allows moisture to collect at the bottom and evaporate. The organics cart is not a composter. The commercial composting facility that takes our materials can handle many organic items that are not suitable for backyard composters.

  • ashes, cooled
  • bread, baked goods
  • beef and beef remains
  • bones
  • candy
  • cardboard, soiled
  • cat litter, not bagged
  • cereal
  • cheeses
  • chicken and chicken remains
  • cooking oil, cooled
  • coffee filters, grounds
  • cotton balls (without nail polish remover or other cleaners)
  • dairy products
  • dryer lint
  • eggs and eggshells
  • facial tissue
  • feathers
  • fish and fish remains
  • floor sweepings
  • flour, grains, dough
  • freezer paper
  • fruit and peelings
  • grass clippings
  • grease, cooled
  • hair
  • leaves
  • meat products, bones
  • oily, fatty foods
  • paper napkins, plates and cups
  • paper products, soiled
  • paper, shredded
  • parchment paper
  • pasta
  • pet waste, not bagged
  • pet wood shavings
  • pizza and soiled pizza boxes
  • plant containers, paper
  • plant materials
  • popcorn
  • popcorn bags
  • popsicle sticks
  • pork and pork remains
  • rice
  • sauces and spreads
  • sawdust and wood chips
  • seafood, seafood shells
  • soap, bar
  • tea bags
  • tissue, soiled
  • toothpicks
  • twigs (small pieces)
  • vegetables and peelings
  • wax paper, soiled
  • weeds
  • wine cork (wood)

Please note: If you have questions about what items are acceptable, call or view the A to Z list.

All organics must fit inside the cart with the lid closed. Materials left outside the cart will not be collected. Carts must weigh less than 90 kg or 200 lbs otherwise the cart cannot be lifted and emptied.

Make sure to put nothing but organics in the organics cart. If other items are included, the cart will not be emptied. Other items will contaminate the composting process.

Ever wonder how your food turns into valuable compost for your garden?
Organic materials are currently sent to a regional organics processing site. They combine our organic waste with wood chips, additional yard waste and moisture to make valuable compost. It takes approximately six to eight months to turn these materials into compost. The organic materials are piled into long windrows. Machines turn the compost to help speed up the composting process. Because the composting process is done at an industrial scale, the organic materials reach high temperatures. This allows us to include meats, dairy products and other organic materials that cannot be composted in a backyard composter. Increasing the temperature also kills any bacteria or pathogens that may be present in the organic material. Finished compost must meet specific standards set by the Composting Council of Canada. This compost can then be used for landscaping projects and reclamation projects.

Extra organics carts are available for an additional monthly fee. Call for details.

If you occasionally have extra grass or leaves that will not fit inside your cart, you can take these materials to the Streambank Avenue Recycling Station located at 420 Streambank Avenue.

From mid-June to mid-September, organics will be collected every week for residents in Sherwood Park (including those who subscribe to weekly collection in Fountain Creek Estates and Balmoral Heights), Antler Lake, Ardrossan, Collingwood Cove, Half Moon Lake, Hastings Lake, Josephburg and North and South Cooking Lake.

Questions?

780-449-5514

Last updated: Monday, October 29, 2012
Page ID: 2220

County Hall: 2001 Sherwood Drive, Sherwood Park, Alberta, Canada T8A 3W7