With return of yard waste collection in Medicine Hat, food waste no longer accepted. File Photo/CHAT News

By Jayk Sterkenburg

IN THE CITY

Yard waste collection returns in Medicine Hat, no longer accepting food waste

Apr 7, 2025 | 3:54 PM

Yard waste collection made its return in Medicine Hat for the season Monday and will run until Nov. 14.

Green organic waste cart collection occurs on the same day as regular garbage collection.

The city said with the conclusion of the Food Waste Collection Pilot Program, food waste will not be accepted in yard waste carts for the time being.

Dallas Sutherland, environmental utilities superintendent of solid waste collection, said food waste was previously accepted in the carts from April until December 2024.

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“It’s certainly a convenient thing to be able to process food waste and yard waste together,” he said.

“It will also conserve landfill airspace for the future, that gives us some certainty for the future, and helps reduce the amount of landfill material.”

Dallas Sutherland. Bob Schneider/CHAT News

Green organic waste carts are now for yard waste materials only.

Acceptable yard waste material includes grass clippings, leaves, plant trimmings, weeds, cut flowers, twigs, branches and limbs up to five centimetres in diameter and nearly a metre in length.

Sutherland said the food waste pilot had a positive outlook at its end, but the city is unable to accept food waste at the time due to not having a facility.

He said the environmental utilities division is hopeful that a facility can be found that will meet the needs of processing food waste so the program can continue, but it is uncertain as of now.

The city said the pilot program was considered a success, seeing a 30 per cent reduction in food waste disposed of in the garbage.

The program also saw 83 per cent of pilot participants indicate that they would participate in a city-wide program.

Sutherland said the program was an item in the 2025-2026 capital budget, but was voted to be removed during a council meeting on Dec. 16.

“We are working with our regional partners on other options,” he said.

“We’re hopeful that in the future, it can still potentially go ahead.”

For a one-time service fee of $50, the city will deliver a green organic waste cart to the front of a property for those who aren’t currently part of the service.

The fee will be applied to utility accounts, and can only be authorized by the current utility account holder.