Request a Free QuoteNiagara Region, Ontario · LANE: FENCE REMOVAL NIAGARA
Fence and Deck Building & Repair Experts
Most old fences come down because a new one is going up, and that is the case this page is written for. Peter builds and repairs wood and chain-link fences. When you get an estimate for a replacement, ask who takes the old fence away and whether that is in the price, because it is a real cost either way. If you haul it yourself, Niagara Region currently lists a "$9 flat charge" for 0 to 50 kg at its landfills and "$128 / tonne" for "Garbage, construction and demolition material" from 51 kg up. You stop at the scale on the way in. We have not weighed an old fence, so we are not giving you a load estimate.
Taking down an ordinary fence does not need a permit in any Niagara town we checked. We found no municipal rule asking for one, and the Building Code Act's demolition permit (s.8(1)) is for "a building", which a plain fence is not. That is our reading, not a ruling from a town. Two things can still stop you. The first is a shared boundary fence. Ontario's Line Fences Act, s.21(1), says the owner of a line fence "shall not take down or remove any part of such fence" without giving the neighbour "at least six months previous notice". There are two exceptions. One applies if the neighbour refuses a written demand to pay the amount set under section 8, and the other if they will pay what fence-viewers award. The Act says nothing about needing the neighbour's permission. It is about notice and money. If you are replacing the fence in the same spot, talk to your neighbour first anyway. The Act does not apply everywhere. St. Catharines has switched it off city-wide except for section 20 (By-law 2014-068, s.12.11), and Thorold's Fence By-law 28-2008 says "the Line Fences Act shall no longer apply in the City of Thorold" (s.4.1.1). In those two cities the six-month notice rule is not the rule, and the town by-law is where to look. See /fence-building-st-catharines/ and /fence-building-thorold/. The second is a pool. A fence that encloses a pool is a pool enclosure, and each of the six pool by-laws we read requires the owner to keep one around the pool. Niagara Falls (By-law 2014-58, s.4.5.3) and St. Catharines (2014-068, s.9.2 viii)) both say an enclosure must give protection "at all times". Welland is the most direct. Its By-law 2022-70 says "No person shall remove any part of a Pool Enclosure if the Pool is filled with water" (s.5.6) and "No person shall alter or replace a Pool Enclosure without having first obtained a Permit from the Chief Building Official" (s.5.7). If the enclosure is damaged and needs replacing, water may stay in the pool behind a temporary enclosure only "with the permission in writing of the Inspector" (s.7.1.4). Niagara Falls, St. Catharines and Thorold require a permit to "erect" a pool enclosure, and each defines that word to include altering one. We read that as covering a replacement, but confirm with the building department. Niagara-on-the-Lake (5155-19, s.5.3.1.2) says a replaced pool fence has to meet the current by-law. When the new fence goes in, the post holes are a dig. Ontario Dig Authority (the new name for Ontario One Call since October 1, 2026) says: "If you are planting a tree, building a fence or deck, landscaping your property, or planning a larger excavation project, you must request a public utility locate before you dig." The duty is in the Ontario Underground Infrastructure Notification System Act, 2012, s.10(1), and s.5.1(4) bars any fee for the request. Public locates do not cover private lines, such as a gas line to a pool heater or power to a shed. You arrange those yourself.
Old fence boards and posts cannot go out with the garbage. Niagara Region's own item lookup for "Fence" says: "Construction, renovation or demolition materials such as fencing are not collected at the curb." Its Waste Management By-law 2017-56 lists wood as construction and demolition material (s.1.15) and keeps it out of bulky-item pickup as well (s.6.2(e)). Cutting boards short does not change that. The 1.5 m bundle rule is for tree branches, not lumber. The Region's drop-off sites are Humberstone (700 Humberstone Rd., Welland), Niagara Road 12 (7015 Concession Rd. 7, West Lincoln), Bridge Street (1300 Bridge St., Fort Erie), and Walker Environmental Group (2800 Thorold Townline Rd., Thorold). Niagara Road 12 takes drop-offs only from residents of Grimsby, Lincoln, Pelham and West Lincoln. Bridge Street does not take "Large commercial loads of mixed waste and construction / demolition material" and sends them to Welland or West Lincoln. The Region asks you to secure the load, stop at the scale, and sort before you unload. An oversized item, which the Region defines as over three cubic metres or longer than eight metres and needing a trailer or other equipment to move, has to be arranged first through the Waste Info-Line, 905-356-4141 or 1-800-594-5542. Scrap metal is listed at no fee, which may matter if you are taking down chain link. Boards with nails in them are handled as ordinary scrap wood. We found no Region rule for pressure-treated or painted wood either way, and no statement of what happens to the wood after drop-off, so ask at the scale house. If the fence panels are still sound, the Region's lookup also points to the Habitat for Humanity Niagara ReStore at 150 Bunting Rd., St. Catharines. Call ahead, because they decide what they take. The Region is moving to a new website on October 14, 2026, so search niagararegion.ca for "landfills" rather than trusting an old bookmark.
No. Niagara Region says "Construction, renovation or demolition materials such as fencing are not collected at the curb," and its waste by-law keeps that material out of large-item pickup too. It goes to a Regional landfill drop-off, where the Region currently lists a $9 flat charge up to 50 kg and $128 per tonne above that.
The Line Fences Act does not use the word permission. Section 21(1) says you may not take down a line fence without at least six months' notice to the neighbour, unless one of the section 8 payment situations applies. St. Catharines and Thorold have switched the Act off by by-law, so there the town's own fence by-law governs.
Not while the pool has water in it, at least in Welland. By-law 2022-70 says "No person shall remove any part of a Pool Enclosure if the Pool is filled with water," and replacing an enclosure needs a permit (s.5.7). A temporary enclosure is allowed only with the inspector's written permission (s.7.1.4). Other towns require the enclosure to be kept up. Call your building department before the old fence comes down.
We found no Niagara town that requires one for an ordinary fence, and the Building Code Act's demolition permit is for buildings. A pool enclosure is different: Welland requires a permit to replace one, and Niagara Falls, St. Catharines and Thorold require one to alter one.
Yes. Ontario Dig Authority, formerly Ontario One Call, says you "must request a public utility locate before you dig" when building a fence, and the request is free by law. Private lines on your own property, like power to a shed, need a private locate.
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