9.3 years of capacity available at Ottawa’s landfill as residents throw out less waste

Options to replace Trail Road Landfill

Ottawa residents have throwing out less waste since the launch of the new three-item garbage limit, but there was a slight increase in waste heading to the landfill to start this year.

The City of Ottawa implemented a three-item garbage limit on Sept. 30, 2024, as part of the plan to extend the Trail Road Landfill. Households are limited to a maximum of three items of garbage every two weeks with yellow bags required for any items over the three-item limit.

The Solid Waste Master Plan update for the June 16 meeting of the environment and climate change committee shows 161,927 tonnes of garbage was collected from households in 2025, down from 179,108 tonnes in 2024 and 183,140 tonnes in 2023.

The data shows 51,332 tonnes of garbage was sent to the landfill in the January to April period this year, up slightly from the 50,662 tonnes of garbage collected in 2024. The city sent 51,151 tonnes of garbage to the landfill in the January to April period of 2024 and 56,545 tonnes during the same period in 2023.

“The three-item garbage limit continues to be an effective tool, with sustained high compliance and ongoing behavioural shifts confirmed through monitoring and the 2025 set-out study,” staff said.

Majority of households complying with 3-item limit

City data shows 98.5 per cent of households are complying with the three-item limit, and approximately 89 per cent of households are putting out two or fewer garbage items every two weeks.

Solid Waste Services conducted a citywide curbside set out study to assess household behaviours following the implementation of the three-item limit. Staff observed waste from 2,295 households over a four-week period in the fall.

“Overall, the study found high compliance with the three-item garbage limit. Ninety-eight-point-five per cent of households remained within the three-item limit, an improvement from 85 per cent in the 2022 set-out study,” staff said. “Most households (89 per cent) set out two or fewer garbage items per collection cycle, compared to 74 per cent in 2022.

Staff say 73 per cent of households were using the green bin, up from 69 per cent in 2022. According to the report, two thirds of households were using the recycling and black box recycling streams.

“Overall, the findings indicate that households are responding positively to the three-item garbage limit, with compliance in curbside diversion programs,” staff said. “The study provides a robust baseline to support ongoing monitoring and evaluation.”

9 years left for Trail Road dump

Council approved the Solid Waste Master Plan in 2024, outlining a number of initiatives to extend the life of the Trail Road Landfill.

Staff estimate the landfill has approximately 9.3 years of capacity available, with the landfill expected to be full in early 2035 “based on the assumption that waste disposal continues at the same average rate.”

New landfill

The City of Ottawa purchased a new private landfill for $95 million in January.

The Capital Region Resource Recovery Centre is a 192-hectare private landfill on Boundary Road near Highway 417

Staff say the recent purchase includes a “number of opportunities that will be explored,” with options to be presented to the new council in 2027.

Other items in the Solid Waste Master Plan

The Solid Waste Master Plan included 50 short-term, medium term and long-term actions for Ottawa’s waste over the next 30 years.

Here is a look at some of the other initiatives the city has introduced.

• Approximately half of the 1,050 targeted properties have been onboarded to the Green Bin program. Staff say organic material collected from multi-residential buildings increased 30 per cent in 2025 compared to 2024.
• The city will renew the Love Food Hate Waste partnership to reduce food waste on July 1 for another year.
• As part of Circular Economy Month in October, the city will hold a Repair Café, a Drop and Swap and upcycling workshops at the Horticulture Building at Lansdowne.
• New recycling stations, signage and education tactics will be introduced at two high-traffic facilities in Ottawa this summer.