Prepare for your trip to the landfill

Landfill guidelines

Make sure your waste loads are covered and secured in your vehicle to prevent littering.
Keep your different types of materials separated as you load up your vehicle. Once at the Throw 'N' Go you will be required to sort your waste into the different material bins.
Customers are responsible for all unloading of materials – staff and equipment are not available to assist.
For your safety, wear closed-toed shoes and always keep children and pets inside the vehicle.

Frequently asked questions

How is my load charged?

Your load is charged by the weight of material. The minimum charge is $25 for all loads under 250 kilograms. Different materials have different costs – please refer to our residential landfill rates page for more information.

How does the landfill scalehouse work?

When you arrive at a City landfill, you will drive to the scalehouse entrance where:

Your vehicle will be weighed
You will advise scalehouse operator of what material you have in your vehicle load to drop off. The scalehouse operator will indicate whether there is a charge for the materials you are dropping off and will direct you to where you will drop off your materials.

After you drop-off your load at the designated area in the landfill, you will drive back to the scalehouse exit where:

Your vehicle will be weighed again. The difference in weight is the tonnage you will pay for.
Payment for your landfill load will be made.
If you are dropping off no charge items at the landfill, you are still required to weigh in and out.

What if I am dropping off different types of materials that are charged at different rates?

Advise the scalehouse operator of your different materials. You will be given the option to weigh in and out for each material so you can pay each rate separately. Please note that you will not be able to bypass the queue if there is a lineup.

If you choose to only weigh in once, then you will be charged the highest rate for all materials dropped off.

Composition of waste loads is highly variable. City landfill staff have final say about acceptability of any material and the charges applied to each load.

I’m not sure what rate my material falls under. How can I figure it out?

Please refer to our residential landfill rates page for more information. If your item does not seem to fit any of the categories, it is likely general garbage and will be charged the basic sanitary garbage rate.

Landfill staff will make the final determination when you bring your materials in.

I only need to bring one item like a mattress to the landfill to get rid of. How much will that cost me?

There is a minimum charge of $25 when bringing garbage items to the landfill. You will not pay more until your garbage load exceeds over 250 kilograms. Most smaller loads will fit below this weight.

What materials can I bring for free to the landfill?

Residential customers can bring select items to the City Throw 'n' Go sites for free recycling or safe disposal. See the list of materials here.

What kind of vehicle is best to take to the landfill?

You can use any kind of motor vehicle to bring your waste loads to the landfill.

Residential customers can use the Throw 'n' Go area which is a paved all-weather location separate from the landfill.

Any commercial vehicles are assumed to be hauling waste from a commercial premise or business operation. Commercial rates and site rules will apply (e.g. not eligible for use of free residential programs).

Is there a weight limit for material to be landfilled (garbage) I bring in?

No, there is no weight limit for garbage. You will be charged the for the weight of your materials.

Quantity limits apply to some items like tires and household hazardous waste. Please see program pages for additional details.

I brought one refrigerator to the landfill for disposal but I was charged more than expected. Why?

Appliances that contain freon are required to pay the refrigerant removal surcharge (even if the refrigerant has been removed). You will also be charged for the weight of your item as well.

Examples include refrigerators, water coolers, freezers, air conditioners and other freon equipment.

Landfill – acceptable items for garbage disposal

The City landfill is helpful for disposal of:

oversized items that don’t fit in the black bin
large quantities or commercial quantities of garbage such as during a construction project

This is not an exhaustive list and intended to provide general examples of the kinds of things people can bring to the landfill for garbage disposal.

Please donate usable items where possible.