What's new in blue and black? Recycling changes coming to Ottawa

There will still be black and blue boxes for recycling lining Ottawa-area streets and you will still have to place them curb-side by early on garbage day, but starting Jan. 1 those curb-side leftovers will be picked up by somebody else.

Here are several things you need to know about the new regime for recycling in Ontario.

Why is recycling in Ottawa changing?

Under provincial regulations, responsibility for collecting and processing recycling is transferring to producers of paper and packaging. The new common collection system is being operated by the “producer responsibility organizations” Circular Materials, Ryse Solutions, Landbell Canada and EnvironFocus Incorporated.

Circular Materials, a national non-profit organization, will administer Ottawa’s recycling program.

A transition period for municipalities that started July 1, 2023, will end on Dec. 31, 2025. During that time, some municipalities, including the City of Ottawa, have continued to manage their own recycling services while being funded by companies that supply packaging and paper products to consumers.

As of Jan. 1, 2026, recycling will be both funded and managed by producers. According to Circular Materials CEO Allen Langdon, that will include 383 Ontario municipalities and 12 First Nations.

Who’s in charge?

Circular Materials was founded by 17 major Canadian food, beverage and consumer products manufacturers, restaurants and retailers. Recycling collection in Ottawa will be performed by Miller Waste Services under contract with Circular Materials.

What’s new in blue and black?

Andrea Gay Farley, City of Ottawa Program Manager for Waste Collections, Programs and Customer Service, says the main change is that responsibility for managing the recycling program now falls to producers, as required by provincial regulations.

You’ll continue to use current standard-sized blue and black bins, but starting Jan. 1, 2026, Ottawa residents needing new or replacement bins will obtain them free of charge through Miller Waste Services: by email at area2@millerwaste.ca or by calling toll-free 1-888-852-2374. The same contact information will come in handy for other questions regarding recycling service.

What’s recyclable now?

While materials collected for recycling have in the past varied from community to community, starting Jan. 1, 2026, all Ontario residents will recycle the same materials. The list now also includes hot (coffee) and cold beverage cups, plastic bags, toothpaste and deodorant tubes, ice cream tubs, black plastic containers and frozen juice containers. Full lists are also available online.

Paper and fibre

• Cardboard boxes (pizza boxes, direct mail boxes, moving boxes, shoe boxes): flattened and no larger than 60×60 cm.

• Boxboard (cereal boxes, tissue boxes, egg cartons, rolls from toilet paper and paper towel): flattened and empty.

• Paper laminate packaging (pet food bags, food service paper bags, and plates): empty and free from food residue.

• Paper laminate containers (spiral cans, cookie dough package, ice cream containers, and hot and cold beverage cups): empty, free from food residue and with lids removed.

• Cartons (beverage cartons, juice and milk cartons, coffee creamers, and sugar cartons, soup and sauce cartons): empty and free from food residue, with lids on; alcoholic beverage containers not included.

• Paper (any colour, including flour bags, prescription bags, paper produce bags; notepads, white or coloured loose paper, file folders, other printed materials; community newspapers, flyers, brochures and magazines; greeting cards and envelopes, gift boxes): empty; shredded paper placed in a tied, clear-plastic bag; separate from plastic bags used to cover items, remove elastic bands; remove rope handles from bags; do not include soft or hard covered books/novels.

Plastic and foam

• Hard plastic containers (laundry detergent and household cleaner jugs, shampoo, body wash, salad dressing, condiment, dish soap, mouth wash bottles, plastic beverage bottles): empty and free from food residue; with lids on; do not include alcoholic beverage containers.

• Plastic packaging and containers (food trays, salad, yogurt, peanut butter, bakery and egg containers, plastic cups, plastic tubs and lids): empty and free from food residue; with lids on; do not include alcoholic beverage containers.

• Tubes (toothpaste tubes, deodorant, hand cream tubes): empty and free from residue; with lids on.

• Small item plastic packaging (hand sanitizer bottles, medication bottles, blister packs, plant pots): empty and free from food and residue; with lids on.

• Flexible plastic packaging (bags used for dry cleaning, bread, newspapers and flyers; overwrap — paper towel & toilet paper, beverage containers — coffee bags or deli pouches, chip bags, bubble wrap, snack wrappers, cereal liner bags, plastic gift bags): empty and free from food residue.

• Foam packaging (meat trays, takeout containers, cups, plates, bowls, foam packaging for products): empty and free from food residue; remove film wrap and absorbent pads from meat trays.

Metal

• Metal containers (food cans, metal lids, cookie, coffee and tea tins, beverage cans): empty and free from food residue; do not include alcoholic beverage containers.

• Aluminum (aluminum foil, pie plates, frozen food trays): empty and free from food residue; ball up aluminum foil.

• Aerosol containers (food spray, hairspray, air fresheners, shaving cream, deodorant): empty; lids on; aerosols with toxic, corrosive or flammable symbol not accepted with the exception of cooking oil sprays and products designed for food as well as hairsprays, cosmetics and products designed to be used on hair/skin.

Glass

• Glass containers (clear and coloured glass; food containers, jars and bottles, cosmetic containers, spice bottles, oil and vinegar bottles, non-alcoholic glass beverage containers): empty and free from food residue; lids off; do not include alcoholic beverage containers.

How will the system work?

You’re still responsible for putting out recycling bins curb-side by 7 a.m. on collection day. Pick-up will no longer be handled by the City of Ottawa, but by Miller Waste Services, and, according to the city, collection may occur at a different time of day.

Garbage and organics (green bins) will still be collected by the city, Farley says.

What’s the public saying?

Capital ward Coun. Shawn Menard, chair of the City of Ottawa’s environment and climate change committee, says public feedback has been “positive with respect to the expansion of items that will be allowed in the program and that the recycling will be collected on the same day as the green bin and garbage. There is concern about who to contact if there are collection issues or where to get new bins.”

To address those concerns, Menard adds, Ottawa is working to ensure automatic forwarding to Miller Waste Services through 3-1-1 and sharing contact information for the provincial blue box program on the city website, Ottawa.ca.

What’s the end goal?

Menard says he’s hopeful expanding the list of items accepted for recycling will result in more of them being diverted from garbage. “The city will continue to promote recycling as one of the very best ways to keep material out of landfill. The council-approved Solid Waste Master Plan is built on diverting and recycling as much as possible,” he writes in an email.

“Though this is a period of change for both residents and the city, Individual Producer Responsibility Programs are designed, in the end, to encourage producers of products and packaging to reduce the amount of waste they create by holding them financially responsible for the end-of-life management. I believe that in time we will notice a marked decrease in packaging and shifts towards materials that can be recycled at a higher value.”

What about multi-residential buildings?

There are a couple of differences in recycling for various categories of multi-residential buildings for the next five years.

First, multi-unit buildings already being served by the City of Ottawa recycling program will be included in the producer-operated system starting Jan. 1, 2026, a Dec. 8 memo to city council said.

However, multi-residential buildings that have been using private recycling will not be eligible to transition to the new producer-operated system until 2031, the memo added.

In addition, new multi-residential buildings with more than six units will also be required to rely on private recycling collection until 2031, according to the memo from Shelley McDonald, Ottawa’s director of solid waste services.

The city will continue to offer garbage, organics and bulky-item collection for new multi-residential buildings and will require all properties to confirm they’ve secured private recycling service before onboarding onto the city’s waste collection service, the memo went on to say.

What about other communities outside Ottawa?

Circular Materials’ website contains a searchable list of community recycling programs. If your community is not listed, refer to the community’s website for recycling information.

With files from Natasha Baldin

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