Find Your Collection Day
Halifax collection days vary by street. Use the official tool to find your exact schedule:
🔍 Find My Collection Day (Halifax.ca) 📱 Download Halifax Recycles App (iOS) 📱 Download Halifax Recycles App (Android)What Goes Where
Clear Bags (Garbage)
Every 2 weeks. Max 6 bags per household. One small opaque bag allowed per clear bag for privacy. No food waste — that goes in green bin.
Blue Bags & Boxes (Recycling)
Every 2 weeks. Blue bags: plastics, glass, cans. Blue boxes: paper, cardboard. Flatten cardboard boxes. No greasy pizza boxes.
Green Cart (Organics)
Every week! Food scraps, coffee grounds, meat, dairy, soiled paper. Use paper bags or certified compostable liners inside green cart.
Bulky Items
1 bulky item per collection day (single-unit homes). Place at curb with regular garbage. No fridges/AC without freon removal certificate.
Household Special Waste (HSW)
Paint, batteries, propane, chemicals — NOT curbside. Drop off at HSW depots. Free for residents. Find depot locations →
Collection Schedule Overview
| Collection | Frequency | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 🟢 Green Cart | Weekly | By 7:00 AM |
| 💙 Recycling | Bi-weekly | By 7:00 AM |
| 🗑️ Garbage | Bi-weekly | By 7:00 AM |
⚠️ Holiday rule: If your collection falls on a Monday or Tuesday holiday, pick-up moves to the previous Saturday. Wednesday–Friday holidays shift to the following Saturday.
Community Recycling Centres
📍 Ragged Lake CRC — 20 Ragged Lake Rd (near Bayers Lake)
📍 Dartmouth CRC — 50 Wrights Cove Rd
📍 Eastern Passage CRC — Closed — use Dartmouth CRC
Hours generally Sat–Sun 8am–4pm. Check halifax.ca for holiday hours.
Electronics Recycling
Drop off old electronics (phones, TVs, computers, appliances) at EPRA drop-off depots — free for residents.
🔗 Find EPRA locations in Nova Scotia
🔗 Find EPRA locations in Nova Scotia
Halifax Waste Collection — Frequently Asked Questions
What day is my garbage or green cart collected in Halifax?
There is no single collection day for the whole municipality — it depends on your address. Look up your civic address on the HRM collection-schedule tool to see your garbage, recycling, and green-cart days.
How often is each stream collected?
Halifax collects on a rotating schedule: green cart (organics) and either garbage or recycling are picked up on alternating weeks. Your personalized HRM calendar shows exactly which stream goes out each week.
What time do I put my bins out?
Have everything at the curb by 7 a.m. on collection day — or set it out after 7 p.m. the evening before. Bins put out late may be missed until the next cycle.
What goes in the green cart?
Food scraps, food-soiled paper, and yard waste like leaves and small branches go in the green cart. Plastic bags don't — line it with paper or newspaper instead. Use the HRM "What Goes Where" search for any specific item.
Where do I take items that aren't collected at the curb?
Take household hazardous waste and bulky drop-offs to a Community Recycling Centre (listed above), and old electronics to a free EPRA depot.