Extra Holiday Garbage? Saint John Has You Covered

With the holiday season comes festive cheer, family gatherings, and often, a lot more garbage than usual. The City of Saint John is giving residents a break by allowing households to place extra garbage at the curb without tags for the two weeks following Christmas.

This temporary change helps you manage the post-holiday cleanup without worrying about extra bag tags. Here are the specific details based on your collection schedule.

Collection Rules for Your Schedule

For Residents with Weekly Pickup

If your garbage is collected every week, you can place two extra bags of garbage at the curb without a bag tag. This applies to collections starting from Friday, December 26, 2025, and ending Wednesday, December 31, 2025.

For Residents with Bi-Weekly Pickup

If your garbage is collected every other week, you can also place two extra bags at the curb without a tag on your regular collection day. This is in effect for pickups from Friday, December 26, 2025, through Wednesday, January 7, 2026.

How to Reduce Holiday Waste

While the extra bag allowance is helpful, the City encourages everyone to reduce, reuse, and recycle. A few simple actions can make a big difference:

• Reuse gift bags and bows for next year.
• Choose recyclable gift wrap and avoid foil or glitter-covered paper.
• Compost food scraps from your holiday meals.
• Recycle cardboard, paper, and eligible plastic packaging.

For tricky items like Styrofoam, crinkly wrappers, and other flexible packaging, you can take them to three local redemption centers: Golden Mile Redemption, Pubs Redemption, and Fundy Redemption Centre. For a complete guide on what can be recycled, you can visit the Circular Materials website.

You can find full details on the city’s garbage and recycling rules on the Waste Wise program page.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many extra bags of garbage can I put out?

You can place a maximum of two extra garbage bags per household at the curb during the specified period.

Do I need to buy tags for the extra bags?

No, you do not need bag tags for these two extra bags during the holiday allowance period.

What are the exact dates for weekly collection?

For weekly pickup schedules, the allowance for two extra bags runs from Friday, December 26, 2025, to Wednesday, December 31, 2025.

What are the dates for bi-weekly collection?

For bi-weekly pickup, you can place your two extra bags out on your normal collection day between Friday, December 26, 2025, and Wednesday, January 7, 2026.

Where can I recycle items like Styrofoam?

You can recycle Styrofoam, crinkly wrappers, and other flexible packaging at Golden Mile Redemption, Pubs Redemption, or the Fundy Redemption Centre.