Green Cart Program

Join the City’s residential Green Cart Program and help turn your organic waste into compost. No need to sign up or leave your home. 

A green cart.

If you already compost in a backyard composter

We encourage you to continue backyard composting, however, you should consider participating in the Green Cart Program too, because some items can't be composted at home, but are accepted in the City's Green Cart Program.

Green Cart Program Eligibility

If you’re a household on a roadside collection route, you can participate and get a Green Cart for free

Benefits of using a Green Cart

  • Unlimited weekly collection
  • Reduces the amount of garbage and helps you meet the current garbage limit for every other week roadside collection
  • Animal resistant containers with a lock
  • Saves landfill space
  • Reduces greenhouse gas emissions
  • Creates compost for reuse

Get started with the Green Cart Program

  • You may request a free Green Cart by downloading the Greater Sudbury Waste Wise App, contacting 311 or submitting a request using the Waste Wise online tool. Allow approximately two weeks for delivery. 
  • Find or buy a container to collect your food scraps. You can use a suitably sized container (for example an empty ice cream container) or buy a kitchen collector. They are available for purchase at Citizen Service Centres or the Recycling Centre at 1825 Frobisher Street, open Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturdays from 7 a.m. to noon. Their cost is $3.65 each. 
  • Buy certified compostable bags to use in your kitchen collector and Green Cart. They are available at most retailers.
  • Learn more about what goes in the Green Cart. You can also use our Waste Wise tool to learn what should go where!

How to use your Green Cart

  • Line your kitchen collector with a certified compostable bag or buy special food waste paper bags. 
  • Collect your food scraps/acceptable organic waste in the kitchen collector, instead of putting them in your garbage. 
  • Every few days or when your kitchen collector bag is full, securely tie the bag with a knot or compostable cotton string, and transfer it into your Green Cart.
  • You may also choose to drain all liquids from your kitchen collector, wrap your organics in newspaper and place them in a closed paper bag in the Green Cart. 
  • Make sure you never place items loosely into a Green Cart. All items must be appropriately contained to be collected.
  • Containers must not weigh more than 40 lbs/18 kg.
  • Put your lockable Green Cart(s) at the roadside by 7 a.m. on your regularly scheduled collection day, for unlimited weekly collection. Put it out even if the cart is not full.