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Western Newfoundland Has A New Way Of Managing Waste

Western Regional Waste Management (WRWM) is pleased to deliver a new, modern waste management service. Residents are required to separate their recyclables from their garbage using blue and clear garbage bags. WRWM’s Sort It Western recycling and garbage program will have the greatest positive impact on keeping waste out of landfills and protecting this place we love so much. This is a mandatory program for all residents. Please do your part by learning how to properly sort your waste.

Residents in Western Newfoundland Can Now Sort Their Waste.

It's As Easy As...

Place clean recyclables in transparent blue bags.
Place accepted garbage in clear bags.
Place bags in the designated area on your collection day.

Sort It Pictograph

Visual Guide for Home Recyclables.

Sort It Pictograph

Sorting Guide for Households

Full Sorting Guide for Household Recyclables.

Sorting Guide for Households

Quick Reference Card

Handy sorting guide for Home Recyclables.

Quick Reference Card

Frequently Asked Questions

A mandatory, single-stream recycling program that started in Western Newfoundland in 2018. Residents can place all recyclable materials into the same transparent blue bag to be recycled. As of 2019, businesses operating in Western Newfoundland are now required to follow the Sort-It Western Business Recycling Program (otherwise known as ICI).
You can visit our website for printable guides, or our office at 4 Herald Avenue, Suite 601 in Corner Brook for a physical copy.
You can call your town office to get a collection schedule. WRWM does not generate or maintain garbage collection schedules.
If you miss garbage collection day, you can either: Wait until the next garbage collection day (provided you are not exceeding your weekly number of bags), or bring your waste to the nearest transfer station. *You will be required to have a WRWM account card, as tipping fees will apply.
All users of WRWM transfer stations are required to pay a fee based on what they are throwing away. The fee for common household garbage is $164/tonne (or about 7 cents per pound). WRWM follows an end-user pay system that requires residents to pay for what they are throwing away.
Waste must be sorted and placed into either clear bags (garbage) or blue bags (uncontaminated recyclables), regardless of whether you use the curbside program offered by your town, or if you bring it in yourself. Other materials accepted by WRWM may be subject to additional sorting requirements. Check the guide for more information.
WRWM works with a local materials recovery facility to divert recyclable materials from our landfills: WRWM outlines what is recyclable as stated in our Sort-It Western guide, and Scotia has markets for each of the recyclable materials that are collected. When you bags are picked up from the curb, they are brought to one of our transfer stations where they are placed into a trailer headed for the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF). Upon arrival, materials are hand-sorted by workers based on their composition (plastics are separated from cardboard and metals), baled, and sent nationally and internationally to be processed into new materials.
Yes. Under the ICI Policy, which requires businesses and apartment buildings to follow the Sort It Western program, you are required to sort all waste according to the Sort-It program: blue bag for recyclables, and clear bag for garbage.
You can get a residential WRWM account card at any transfer station or at the WRWM office in Corner Brook. To get one, you need a government-issued photo ID. There is no fee to sign up for an account card. If you lose your card, you can request a new card. Replacement cards cost $5.
You can contact your town to request for additional bags to be picked up from your curb. Based on your towns policies, you may be charged for additional bags you put out for curbside. If you do not have prior permission to put out more than the limit, your additional bags may be left at your curb.
Electronics, Metals, Mercury-containing bulbs, Paint, tires, and other Hazardous Waste can be brought to your nearest transfer station to be recycled. There is no tipping fee to recycle these items at transfer stations in Western Newfoundland. Household batteries, old cell phones can be brought to WRWM office on Main Street or to your nearest transfer station.
A privacy bag is a small, non-transparent bag, such as a grocery bag, that you can place items you do not wish to be visible (such as bathroom, sanitary, or medical waste). You can place up to two privacy bags inside each clear garbage bag.
Pour into a glass container, or the container it came in and place it into the clear garbage bag.
Kitchen utensils (including metal) are not recyclable and are to be placed into the clear garbage bag. In fact, recycling things like old kitchen knives can cause worker injury or damage the machinery at the facility. Place them into your clear garbage bag or bring them to the transfer station for disposal.
We cannot recycle glass in Western Newfoundland. Household lightbulbs, mason jars, small appliances (like the glass from a blender) can be placed into the clear bag. If it is broken, please place it inside a container (like a taped-up box) clearly marked GLASS and place the container inside a clear garbage bag. You can also consider giving old mugs, glasses, and jars away so that they do not end up in the landfill.
Burning garbage in Newfoundland is illegal and carries a significant fine under the Air Pollution Act\Environmental Protection Act. You can file a complaint about garbage burning with the Environmental Protection Officer for your area.
No. Clothing and textiles are not recyclable. Textiles that are placed in recycling bags can jam and break the machines at the facility. If you would like to repurpose your textiles, please consider donating them.
WRWM does not haul, nor does it contract haulers. To find out why your garbage/recycling was left at the curb, call your town. If your recycling bag was left and has a sticker, you may have improperly recycled an item. Removing the item listed on the sticker should ensure your bag gets taken next week.
Medical sharps include needles and other types of sharp medical waste and should be contained for disposal in a puncture-proof container. Contact your local pharmacy to obtain a sharps collection container and return it to the pharmacy or any Western Health facility when it is full. DO NOT place sharps or medical waste of any kind inside your blue or clear bag.