The City of Lethbridge is asking residents to fill out a survey about how they use their green carts, as the curbside organics program marks three years since its launch in May 2023. Feedback collected through August 30, 2026, will guide improvements and help the city reach its goal of cutting landfill waste in half by 2030.
Since the green cart program started in May 2023, Lethbridge households have kept more than 20 million kilograms of apple cores, grass clippings, and other organic scraps out of the landfill. That works out to an average of 585 kilograms per home, according to the City of Lethbridge.
The program has grown steadily. Participation has jumped from 85 per cent of eligible homes in the first year to 94 per cent today. But city staff think more can be done. Waste audits still find food waste making up about 37 per cent of what gets thrown into black garbage carts, despite a 14 per cent drop since green carts were introduced.
“Hearing directly from residents helps us better understand what’s working, what isn’t and where we can provide additional support,” says Asheley Cowie, Infrastructure Services Education & Outreach Team Lead. “By taking a few minutes to complete the survey, residents can tell us how they use their green cart, how it helps them reduce waste and what resources would make the program even more effective for their household.”
The online questionnaire asks whether people are putting all their food scraps into the green cart, what might be stopping them, and if they understand what items are allowed. Plastic bags remain the top contaminant, showing up in about two per cent of loads, which city crews have to screen out at the processing facility.
Getting more food waste into green carts is a key step toward Lethbridge’s target of keeping 50 per cent of all garbage out of the landfill by 2030. The survey will help shape future education campaigns and service adjustments under the Waste Management Master Plan approved by city council in November 2024.
Green carts are collected weekly from May through October and shift to every other week between November and April. The service costs single-family homes $5 a month and multi-family units $4 a month on utility bills. Residents who complete the survey can find it on the city’s website before the August 30 deadline.
