The City of Campbell River accepts recycling year round as part of the weekly curbside collection program. This program is delivered through our contractor, Emterra Environmental, and is funded by an annual collection service fee.
To learn more about how to recycle different materials, use the What Goes Where? tool:
Accepted Curbside Recycling
Paper products such as:
- newspapers
- flyers
- pizza boxes
- magazines
- flattened boxboard and cardboard
- paper egg cartons
- telephone books
Metal items such as:
- cans
- aluminum foil
- Tetra-Pak drink boxes
- hot and cold beverage cups
- milk cartons
- non-toxic aerosol cans
- plastic garden plant pots and seedling trays
Hard plastic materials such as containers are also collected. Polystyrene (eg. Styrofoam) is only collected at Multi-Matrial BC (MMBC) depots.
Due to stricter end-market guidelines, paper bags lined with plastic (e.g. dog food bags, tortilla chip bags, etc.) are no longer accepted in blue bins.
Preparing for Collection
Place paper and cardboard on the bottom of the box with heavier items on top or on windy days, a rock or brick may be placed on top of loose papers. Shredded paper must be contained (i.e. in a cereal box). You may not use a plastic bag to hold shredded paper.
An unlimited amount of recycling can be left at the curb in a City supplied blue box. The use of other containers are permitted as long as they are not larger than 68 litres in volume (City’s standard size). Additional blue boxes may be purchased at City Hall.
Please do not put extra recycling in plastic bags as they will not be collected.
Curbside Collection Guidelines
You can find collection schedules by using the ReCollect tool on the Collection Schedules page, or by downloading the Campbell River Recycles app.
For curbside collection, your recycling should be placed out by the curb as close to 7:30 a.m. as possible, but no earlier than midnight, on your scheduled collection day. Following collection, please bring recycling containers back to your property by 8 p.m. These rules help reduce the risk of attracting bears and other wildlife.
Alternative Recycling Options
If you have materials not accepted in the curbside program, there are other options to recycle them.
Multi-Material BC Depots accept polystyrene, glass, paper, cardboard, aluminum, plastic bags and overwrap. There are two locations in Campbell River:
- Comox Strathcona Waste Management Centre— 6700 Argonaut Road
- Island Return-It Centre—1580 Willow Street
For more recycling options, you can refer to Yellow Pages EcoGuide or contact the Recycling Council of BC.
Additionally, a wide range of materials are accepted at the depots. Visit the Comox Strathcona Waste Management website to find a complete list and a location near you.
Multi-Family Properties
All multi-family buildings in Campbell River must have recycling. The following properties are not included in the curbside collection program:
- multi-family or strata Properties (apartments, townhouses, condos or anything larger than a fourplex)
- trailer parks
Missed Pickups
If your pickup was missed, you can contact Emterra at 250-286-0211 to arrange a new pickup. In the meantime, bring your waste bins back to your property by 8 p.m., as usual, to reduce the risk of attracting bears and other wildlife. Yard waste bags or containers with no food waste can remain at the curbside.