Curbside Collection Overview

CVRD Curbside Program

The Cowichan Valley Regional District (CVRD) collects recycling from single-family properties within all of the Electoral Areas. Garbage services are currently available to households in Electoral Areas D, E, F, G, and I. Garbage collection in Areas A, B, C, and H is not provided by the CVRD, but residents can access a private hauler and subscribe to a garbage collection service. 

The future is three-stream (organics, recycling, and garbage) curbside collection! To learn more about the project, visit Plan Your Cowichan.

Three Stream Phase 2 Opens in new window

Curbside Totes

CVRD issued recycling and garbage totes are property of the CVRD and must remain at their assigned address. 

Standard tote sizes are 240L for the blue recycling totes and 140L for the black garbage totes. This is adequate for most homes (note: a 140L tote is roughly equal to two regular garbage cans). 

If you require an additional tote or would like to exchange yours for a different size, see the tote exchange form for more information. Please note that garbage totes larger than the 140L size will be subject to an additional annual service fee to ensure that all users pay their fair cost for garbage disposal.

Collection Schedules

Need a reminder for your scheduled collection day? Click the box below to view your collection calendar.

Missed Collection

Have a missed pickup? Please follow the Tips for a Successful Pickup below to ensure that your totes are collected on your scheduled pickup day.

Sign Up for Curbside Collection Service Alerts

To access up-to-date information about missed collections due to mechanical failures or weather-related disruptions please visit the CVRD Facebook page. 

To receive updates via text or email, subscribe to the Garbage & Recycling CVRD News Flash system or download the Cowichan Recycles app (Google Play Store download, Apple App Store download).

Curbside Collection Inclement Weather Policy

Extreme weather events or acts of nature (e.g. snow, ice, flooding, etc.) may impede drivers from providing regularly scheduled curbside collection service. In some cases, an extreme weather event can cause some curbside collection services to be cancelled on your regularly scheduled collection day.

If CVRD Curbside Truck Drivers are unable to provide curbside collection service due to inclement weather, you can:

1) Hold onto your material until the next scheduled collection day. Drivers will accept extra recyclables if they are placed in clearly marked containers such as laundry hampers, cardboard boxes or garbage cans (no plastic bags, please). If you receive garbage pickup, place extra garbage bags in a clearly marked wildlife-friendly container beside your tote. 

2) Take your material to a CVRD Recycling Centre.

Tips for a Successful Pickup

  • Sort your waste materials correctly
    1. Review the recycling and garbage webpages to learn what belongs in the totes and what must be taken to a Recycling Centre
    2. Use the Cowichan Recyclopedia, or download the Cowichan Recycles app on Google Play or the Apple App Store to find out how to recycle or dispose of a specific item
    3. For curbside recycling, please ensure that materials are kept loose within the tote
  • Be Bear Aware and do not leave your totes out overnight. 
    • To ensure a successful collection, totes may be placed at the curb after 5:00 am and before 7:30 am on your scheduled collection day; pickup times are not guaranteed and may change from week to week.
  • Space your totes 1 metre apart from each other and surrounding objects
    1. Automated mechanical arms pick up the totes and need a certain amount of clearance to work effectively. Place all totes at least one metre (three feet) apart from each other and surrounding objects such as vehicles, poles, and utility boxes
    2. Ensure that there is a three metre (ten feet) clearance from overhanging obstacles
    3. In snowy weather, this includes placing your tote 1 metre away from snowbanks and other debris. Please do not place your totes on snowbanks.
  • Ensure that all material fits inside your totes with the lid fully closed
    •  When tipped, overfilled totes can spill material onto the road
  • Point the tote lid to open toward the street
    1. Ensure that the arrows on the lid point toward the street
  • Avoid obstructing sidewalks with your totes
    1. Totes should be placed as close to the roadway as possible, without becoming a hazard by blocking sidewalks, cycling lanes, or roadways
2022- Curbside Collection 3