City of Ottawa staff are seeing more fires at the Trail Road landfill and they’re blaming batteries

The tops of several batteries are seen in this undated photo. (Hilary Halliwell/Pexels)

City of Ottawa staff say they’re seeing an increase in the number of fires at the Trail Road landfill, and discarded batteries are the suspected cause.

The news came in an email to city councillors this week from Shelley McDonald, Ottawa’s director of Solid Waste Services. While updating councillors on what her department has been up to in the first half of the year, she raised a particular concern.

“There have been a greater number of fires at the landfill in 2025,” McDonald wrote under a section titled “How residents can help.”

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“If disposal in the garbage is the only option, please check and remove any batteries first which can cause fires at the landfill. Residents can use the City’s Waste Explorer to find locations for the safe and convenient return of batteries,” she said.

In a statement to CTV News Ottawa, Jason Staniforth, manager of Waste Processing and Disposal, said staff have linked several fires to used batteries.

“The majority of these fires appear to be caused by ruptured batteries that were improperly disposed of in the regular garbage stream. These types of fires pose serious risks to waste facility staff, equipment, and the environment,” he wrote.

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According to Staniforth, there have been four fires at the landfill so far this year that required a response from Ottawa firefighters and each incident was reported to the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks.

“In response to an increase in incidents, the City has recently begun tracking every fire-related event at the landfill, regardless of the size or whether Ottawa Fire Services was required,” Staniforth said. “While data is not yet available, when small-scale events occur, they are typically resolved on site by staff, who extinguish the fire by excavating and transferring hot waste to a non-flammable pad.”

He is reminding residents to check discarded items for batteries before throwing them in the garbage.

“Items like toys, remote controls, greeting cards, vapes, and rechargeable tools often contain hidden batteries that can overheat and ignite under landfill conditions,” he said.

There are five more household hazardous waste disposal events scheduled for this year. The next one is set to take place Aug. 9 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the City of Ottawa Trim Road Depot, at 2035 Trim Rd.

You can see more household hazardous waste events on the city’s website.