Garbage service delays due to snow and ice

Weather delays

In case of snow or ice, leave your bins at the curb. Your garbage company will come as soon as they can.

Find the most up-to-date information on  your garbage company's website:

• Arrow Sanitary
• City Sanitary
• Heiberg Garbage & Recycling
• Portland Disposal and Recycling
• Recology
• Republic Services of Lake Oswego
• Wacker
• Walker
• WM (Waste Management)

In cases of prolonged snow and ice, pick-up could be delayed by days. Garbage will be prioritized over recycling and compost. If collections must wait a week or longer, drivers are prepared to take the previous week's materials at no additional cost to you. 

No credits or refunds will be offered for delayed collections due to inclement weather.

How to dispose of large branches, trees, and stumps 

If you have branches or tree sections that are longer than three feet or thicker than four inches, here are disposal options: 

• Contact your garbage and recycling company to get a cost estimate for a bulky waste pickup.
• Contact a Tree Care Provider for removal cost estimates.
• Or find pick-up and drop-off options by using Metro's Find A Recycler and searching for "branches" or "stumps." You can also submit a question at oregonmetro.gov/AskMetro or call 503-234-3000 between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, to speak with someone in English or Spanish. 

Why delays happen

Even if your street is clear, hazardous roads in other parts of the city may have made it unsafe for waste collection drivers to get to your area.

“You might look out your door and expect collection because you see sunshine and a clear, safe street,” said Dave Huber of WM, one of Portland’s garbage service providers. “The challenge may be related to what happened the day before in another part of town. If conditions didn’t allow us to collect yesterday in one part of town, we may have every available driver on the street for recovery in that area.”

Additionally, weather-related closures of key components of our regional waste system can disrupt Portland's waste collection. For example, snow and ice can cause the region's transfer stations - where garbage is dropped off to be reloaded into large trucks and taken to the landfill in Arlington, Oregon - to close or have limited hours. This leaves garbage trucks with no way to empty their trucks. 

Thank you for your patience

We know garbage, recycling, and compost delays are frustrating. The decision to delay waste collection is not made lightly. When service is delayed, garbage and recycling companies still have to collect the waste from those days – which means once it’s safe to get back on the road, they have to do double the work, without the ability to double their staff or trucks. 

When garbage companies delay service, it’s because of serious safety risks to their staff. This includes waste collection truck drivers and all the staff that support many other aspects of our complex waste collection system. 

The City of Portland and the nine garbage and recycling companies that serve Portland residents appreciate your patience. 

Find more winter weather information

From road closures to reporting downed trees, find a full list of City of Portland weather-related updates, closures, and helpful information.

To stay updated on garbage collection delays, sign up for collection delay alerts.