Blue Box

Who is eligible?

We collect blue box recycling from single-family homes, legal duplexes, eligible townhouse units, and small apartment buildings (6 units or less) every week. Check your eligibility, collection day and services. 

Apartment buildings of 7 units or more, and most townhouse/condominium complexes do not receive curbside collection from us.

Still not sure if your property is eligible?  Please contact our Call Centre at 519-575-4400, available 24 hours a day, every day.

Approved collection containers

Collection crews pick up thousands of blue boxes each day. Using the right container keeps them safe and makes it easier for them to sort recyclables into their two truck compartments.

Items in wheeled carts, laundry hampers, storage totes, blue plastic "recycling" bags, blue plastic "recycling" cans, large clear or opaque bags, and cardboard boxes will not be collected.

Are you a new homeowner in Waterloo Region? If you've moved into a house within the last six months and receive curbside collection, bring proof of your new/changed residency to the Region's Waste Management offices to pick up a blue box: 

• 201 Savage Drive, Cambridge (Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.)
• 925 Erb Street West, Gate 1, Waterloo (Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.)

Broken blue box? Bring your broken blue box to the offices noted above, and we will give you a replacement.

Need additional blue boxes or replacements (perhaps blown away in windy weather)?  Please purchase them from local retailers, and look for these features:

1. A reusable, rectangular plastic box - not a cart, can, or bag.
2. A rim around the top so the driver can lift it and hook it on the side of the truck for sorting.
3. Made from rigid plastic which does not bend or give when lifted full.
4. Correct sizes:
   • Blue boxes for Containers Only (for cans, cartons, bottles, and jars) no larger than 68 to 91 litres (18 to 24 gallons).
   • Blue boxes for Paper Products and Plastic Bags (for paper, boxes, flyers, and plastic bags) no larger than 45 to 60 litres (12 to 16 gallons).

Collection schedule and rules

• Set out your blue boxes by 7 a.m. every week on your collection day. Use our online address search to find your collection day. 
• There is no limit to the number of blue boxes you can set out each week.
• Do not put broken glass or other hazardous waste in your blue box. Blue boxes with broken glass or other hazardous waste will not be emptied.
• Do not overfill. Maximum weight for each blue box is 23 kilograms (50 pounds).
• Keep your blue boxes visible and in reach for collection staff (not behind a snowbank or parked car).
• Prepare recyclables correctly. This includes,
• emptying and rinsing all cans, cartons, bottles and jars, and placing them in loose in your blue box (containers that are bagged will not be collected)
• flattening, sizing and bundling corrugated cardboard in the correct dimensions
• putting all acceptable bags in a grocery-sized plastic bag, and tying the handles of the outer bag closed
• sorting recyclables into two blue boxes (cans, cartons, bottles and jars in one blue box, and paper products and plastic bags in another blue box).

If you have any questions or collection concerns, contact our Call Centre 519-575-4400, available 24 hours a day, every day.

What goes in?

We collect recyclables that are prepared and sorted using the two-box sorting system.

"Containers" blue box:  

Empty and rinse all containers.

Put them in loose - do not bag.

• Aluminum foil trays and wrap
• Cans:  Includes metal food and beverage cans, paint cans (dry paint cans only, remove lid), empty aerosol cans
• Cartons:  Includes drinking boxes, milk and juice cartons
• Glass bottles and jars (remove metal lids and put both pieces loose in blue box)
• Paper cups, such as take-out coffee cups (remove plastic lid and put both cup and lid loose in the blue box)
• Plastic containers:  Includes plastic bottles, jars and clamshell containers that contained food, a beverage, cleaning, personal or pet care product at the point of purchase, and clean flower pots/trays, and with plastic identification symbols one through seven: . 

Notes:  The plastic identification symbol tells us the type of plastic an item is made out of, not whether it is recyclable in our program. Some plastic items (such as toys or storage bins) may have those symbols on them, but they can't be accepted in our Blue Box program.  

Number 6 is Polystyrene/Styrofoam. There are different types of polystyrene. We cannot accept the expanded foam type which includes packing blocks and peanuts, as well as anything that did not contain something at the point of purchase, such as cutlery.

"Paper products and plastic bags" blue box

• Paper, including newspaper, magazines, writing paper, envelopes, hard and soft covered books, and paper wrapping paper. Put inside a plastic bag and tie the handles of the bag to reduce litter.
• Boxboard, including cereal, cracker, and tissue boxes, paper take-out trays, egg cartons, paper towel and toilet paper tubes. Flatten. Stuff inside of an unflattened box, bundle no larger than 75 x 75 x 20 centimetres (30 x 30 x 8 inches), or put into a grocery bag.
• Corrugated cardboard: Flatten and size no larger than 75 x 75 x 20 centimetres (30 x 30 x 8 inches), tie together with twine and place beside your blue box.
• Plastic bags and outer wrap: All bags with plastic identification symbols two and four; grocery, shopping, zippered bags (no stand-up pouches), dry cleaning, newspaper, bread bags, fresh and frozen fruit/vegetable bags, milk outer and rinsed and dry inner bags, salt bags (softener, road), clean garden soil and mulch bags. Plastic outer wrap such as from packages of paper towels, napkins, diapers, and cases of pop. Stuff inside one bag and tie the outer bag closed.

Wondering if an item is accepted in our Blue Box program? Ask the Waste Whiz! 

What stays out?

Some items cannot go into the blue box because

1. We don't have a processor who can turn it into something else,
2. The item may cause health and safety concerns for collection staff, and/or
3. The item is banned from the landfill.

Items that are not accepted will be left behind by collection staff, and include:

• Appliances, electronics
• Bags that stand up (pouches), plastic mesh bags (such as for grapes), "crinkle" bags (that make a loud noise when you squish it - such as pasta, cereal and cracker bags)
• Bagged containers (keep cans, cartons, bottles and jars loose to allow proper sorting at our Nyle Ludolph Materials Recycling Centre)
• Broken glass (wrap in several layers of newspaper, or put in a cardboard box and tape the box shut, and then place in the garbage)
• Bubble wrap, cellophane wrap, plastic stretch wrap
• Candy wrappers, snack wrappers
• Cans, cartons, bottles and jars that still contain food or beverages
• Cardboard cans, such as frozen orange juice cans (If you take them apart, metal ends and plastic lids can be put in the Containers Only blue box, and paper middle can be recycled with boxboard.)  
• Chip bags
• Coffee pods (even if labelled "recyclable", they are not accepted in our program)
• Diapers
• Dishware, glassware, cookware
• Foil wrapping paper, bows and ribbons 
• Furnace filters
• Household hazardous waste, including syringes
• Light bulbs
• Mirrors
• Toys
• Styrofoam, expanded polystyrene including peanuts, packing blocks, trays
• Windows
• Wooden orange crates
• Other plastic household items (like cutlery, hangers, laundry baskets)

Wondering how to dispose of an item? Ask the Waste Whiz!

Tips and FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

• Sort it right by using two blue boxes: one for cans, cartons, bottles and jars, and another one for paper products and plastic bags.
• Download our waste app to set personalized waste collection reminders.
• Ask the Waste Whiz to see if an item is accepted in our Blue Box program, and how to best prepare it.
• Prevent litter by preparing recyclables correctly and not overfilling your blue boxes.
• Check out our brochures and other information on our Publications and Resources page.
• Conserve water when rinsing containers. After washing dishes, use the dishwater to rinse out cans, cartons, bottles and jars.
• Using a permanent marker, write your address on each blue box.  

Where does it go?

Our collection contractors drop off recyclables at our Nyle Ludolph Materials Recycling Centre (NLMRC), located at 925 Erb Street West (Gate 1), Waterloo. The NLMRC has two sections, one to receive the Paper Products and Plastic Bags, and the other to receive all Containers.

Paper products and plastic bags are dropped off in the east side of the facility, and are loaded into large tractor trailers; we do not sort paper, and plastic bags. This material is shipped to Niagara Recycling, where it is further sorted and then sold to market.

The Containers are dropped off in the west side of the NLMRC, separated by material type, and shipped to different markets in southwestern Ontario, and northern and east south-central regions of the United States.

Ensuring recyclables are sorted properly is key to selling them to market. Early in 2018, China stopped receiving shipments of mixed recyclables. As a result, North American markets have been flooded with recyclables, tightening their requirements, and lowering their tolerance for contamination (unacceptable material).

The good news is that with the two-box sort, we can produce marketable materials! Everyone - residents, collection crews, and the NLMRC processor - are responsible to do their part to help meet the demanding requirements and maximize revenues (to help offset program costs).