Bylaws related to composting

According to our Community Standards Bylaw, property owners or occupants must maintain composting piles or containers to prevent them from causing nuisance by emitting offensive odours or attracting pests.

Furthermore, they are prohibited from placing or permitting the placement of cat feces, dog feces, animal parts, or animal meat on composting piles or containers on the property. Additionally, property owners or occupants are not allowed to have an open composting pile within ten (10) metres of an adjacent residence, measured from the closest part of the composting pile to the closest part of the neighboring residence.

Fines for violations of these regulations range between $50 and $100.

Composting regulations are found in part 7 of our Community Standards Bylaw.

This page is an overview of these regulations. Please refer to the actual bylaw for more detailed information. Original copies of the bylaw are available at the City Clerk's office.

If you know of a bylaw infraction and would like to report it, please call 311 (from within Calgary) or 403-268-CITY (2489) (from outside Calgary) or use the 311 app or: 

To help us respond faster, please be ready with the following information:

• Your name and address
• A primary and alternate phone number
• The address and exact location of the property for which you wish to register a complaint
• A brief and concise description of the complaint

This information will remain confidential. No anonymous complaints will be accepted - you must identify yourself with the 311 service representative.

When reporting on the 311 app, users are encouraged to add photos to assist the investigating officer.

Learn more about filing a bylaw complaint and the process.