Recycling
Starting October 1, 2026, more materials will be accepted in your blue bag and at the recycling depot. Phase two of the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) begins, and new recycling materials will be accepted province-wide.
New items include:
- Flexible plastic and films (chip bags, toothpaste, pet food bags and bubble wrap)
- Empty aerosol containers (cooking spray, perfume, hair spray, deodorant and shaving cream)
- Foam packaging (meat trays, take-out containers, and foam packaging)
- Paper laminates (coffee cups and ice cream containers)
The City of St. Albert provides the Recycling Program to all single-family households and some multi-family homes and condo complexes. Recyclable items must be clean and dry, and placed in Blue Recycling Bags. Residents can place an unlimited number of Blue Recycling Bags and flattened cardboard out for collection on their household's waste collection day.
Cart Collection
The Residential Solid Waste Management Bylaw (6/2025) describes the rules and regulations which must be followed for waste collection.
Learn more by viewing the Cart collection rules
Failure to follow these regulations will result in:
- Blue bags being tagged with an explanation of what requirement is not being met.
- No blue bag collection.
Did you receive an Oops! sticker on your recycling?
We can provide feedback to help you re-sort your bag if you send a photo of your recycling to wastewise@stalbert.ca
What Goes in the Blue Recycling Bag?
Download the "What Goes Where?" Quick Sorting Guide or search for specific items using the tool below.
Curbside Collection Guidelines
The Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) phase two begins October 1, 2026, and new materials will be accepted province-wide for recycling.
New materials include:
- Flexible plastic and films (chip bags, toothpaste, pet food bags and bubble wrap)
- Empty aerosol containers (cooking spray, perfume, hair spray, deodorant and shaving cream)
- Foam packaging (meat trays, take out containers and foam packaging)
- Paper laminates (coffee cups and ice cream containers)
EPR shifts the cost of recycling materials like single-use products, packaging, and paper products (PPP), batteries and hazardous and special products (HSP) away from municipalities and utility ratepayers to the producers and manufacturers who supply those products into the marketplace. For more information about EPR you can visit the Provincial Government's site for Extended Producer Responsibility
Even with the introduction of EPR, some materials continue to be not accepted in the blue bags, such as durable goods, toys, Tupperware, plant pots, cookware and books. Unacceptable materials, including food residue and liquids, compromised the clean recycling and disrupt standard recycling loops or can’t be efficiently processed by automated single-stream sorting machinery.
Please ensure that all recycling items are placed inside a see-through blue bag. Contents of blue bag should be clearly visible for collection. Opaque bags may be rejected due to contamination and safety concerns.
Residents are encouraged to learn more about how to reduce waste by using reusable items such as coffee mugs, utensils and grocery bags instead of single-use items. Glass jars can also be reused for crafts and home storage.
Blue Recycling Bags are collected every week throughout the year on your household's designated waste collection day.
For specific details, please refer to the Collection Schedule
What can I recycle?
- Magazines & phone books
- Office paper, envelopes, craft paper
- Paper egg cartons
- Paper greeting cards, gift wrap & tissue paper (no glitter or decorations)
- Newspapers & flyers
- New! Paper laminate packaging (e.g. pet food bags, food service bags, and plates)
- New! Paper laminate containers (e.g. ice cream containers, hot and cold beverage to-go cups, spiral cans)
- New! Shredded paper (put into separate clear plastic bag)
- Cardboard must be flattened and not be greater than 1 m x 1 m (3 ft x 3 ft) in size. Flattened cardboard exceeding this size may be torn and placed in Blue Bags, or brought to the Mike Mitchell Recycling Depot.
- Boxboard
- Corrugated cardboard
- Flattened boxes (such as cereal, shoe and cardboard boxes: remove packaging and flatten)
- New! Pizza boxes (remove liner and any food chunks, some grease spots ok)
- Food cans & tins
- New! Aerosol cans (empty, non-hazardous)
- Aluminum foil and packaging
- Beverage cans (such as pop and beer cans)
- New! Bottles and jars (clean and empy)
- Hard plastic tubs, bottles, lids & containers (e.g. shampoo, ketchup, sour cream, mayonnaise, margarine etc.)
- Plastic clamshell packaging (e.g. berry containers, sandwich trays, fruit/vegetable trays)
- New! Take-out containers
- New! Toothpaste tubes, deodorant, hand cream tubes
- New! Plastic plant pots
- New! Flexible plastic packaging (e.g. chip bags, snack wrappers, cereal liner bags)
- Flattened milk jugs
- Bottle deposit containers (including glass)
- Non-deposit Tetra Pak containers (e.g. soup containers, alternative milk cartons)
- New! Flexible and rigid foam packaging (e.g. meat trays, takeout containers, cups, plates, bowls, packing peanuts, Styrofoam blocks)
Related Pages
Last edited: October 5, 2026
