Enhanced Recycling Options at Calgary's New Eco Centres
The City of Calgary has made it easier than ever to recycle, reuse, and dispose of materials through their enhanced Eco Centres. These self-sorting areas provide Calgarians with a convenient, paved, and year-round drop-off location for a wider variety of materials that don't fit or belong in your regular bins.
Enhanced Eco Centre sites offer convenient drop-off locations that make it easier for Calgarians to bring materials to be recycled, reused, and disposed of properly. New changes to the drop-off experience include easy-to-read signage and revised facility layout. The range of materials that can now be brought to the Eco Centres has also expanded to include foam packaging and reusable items like furniture, household items, and bikes.
Previously known as the “Throw n Go” area, the recent service changes provided an opportunity to rename the self-sorting areas as “Eco Centres.” This new name highlights the evolution of recycling and reuse opportunities and gives a familiar name that residents may recognize from neighboring municipalities that have similar facilities.
The Eco Centres accept a wide range of materials from yard waste for composting, blue bin recyclables, scrap metal, household items, drywall, wood, hazardous waste, bikes, foam packaging, electronics and much more. Some materials will have a charge, while many others can be dropped off at no cost.
The Eco Centres can be found alongside the three City landfill locations.
These self-sorting Eco Centre areas are beneficial to the community, allowing Calgarians to bring several types of materials to one location for disposal such as:
Reusable and recyclable materials that that often end up in the garbage but could find a second life in a different way (e.g. oversized cardboard, large metal appliances, electronics, drywall etc.).
Materials that require safe disposal or special handling (e.g., chemicals, paint, auto batteries).
Garbage that is oversized or unacceptable in the residential program (e.g., construction and renovation materials).
To fine-tune the enhanced service, The City tested the upgrades at the Spyhill Eco Centre before fully implementing them the Shepard and East Calgary locations. It was found that waste diversion improved more compared to the other two locations. For example,
29% more oversized cardboard was recycled.
163% more reuse items and 30% more electronics was diverted from the landfill.
25% more metal in designated bins.
A few things Calgarians should know when visiting the Eco Centre:
Make sure your waste loads are covered and secured in your vehicle to prevent littering.
Keep materials separated. This will make it easier to sort and drop off materials into the right bins.
You are responsible for all unloading of materials.
For your safety, wear closed-toed shoes and always keep children and pets inside the vehicle.
More information on fees and what the Eco Centre accepts can be found at calgary.ca/ecocentre.