From the City of Calgary
The City of Calgary Parks department and Waste and Recyling Service will conduct a small-scale pet waste diversion collection pilot in two off-leash dog parks from April to November 2023. One of the two parks is on Tom Campbell’s Hill. A redesigned residential green cart will be located at the park entrance to offer pet owners the option to dispose of pet waste for composting and pet owners will be encouraged to use certified compostable bags. The composting facility staff will assess each load collected for acceptability and contamination to determine if it will be composted or disposed of in a landfill.
Plastic bags are the main contamination issue at the Calgary composting facility and are the reason pet waste has not been going to this facility to date. Most pet waste bags sold at retailers in Calgary and online are still made of plastic or so-called “biodegradable plastic,” neither of which are compostable.
As the federal government moves toward banning the sale of certain types of plastic bags, we may start to see more options for “certified compostable plastic bags,” which will compost in The City of Calgary’s composting facility.
To dispose of pet waste in the green cart at Tom Campbell’s Hill, the waste must be collected in a compostable or paper bag and put inside the cart. It cannot be placed inside loose (unbagged).
Pet waste compostable bags are available at pet stores and vet clinics in Calgary. A list of brands and retail locations is available at calgary.ca/greencart.
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