It’s that time of year again, when thousands of trees dump their colorful foliage onto the sidewalks and streets of Eugene neighborhoods.
To lighten the load for leaf rakers, the city of Eugene Public Works started its annual leaf collection program this week, and maintenance crews began sweeping up and distributing the leaves to local mulchers and composters.
The program, which started Monday in North Eugene, will continue in immediate University areas on Nov. 10, working its way around the city until the second round of pick-ups starts on Dec. 15.
In the midst of the first week’s collection efforts, Tony Jobanek, Public Works maintenance supervisor and coordinator of the leaf pick-up, said the program has been going very well.
“The leaf drop has been relatively light because varieties of trees drop their leaves at different times,” he said. Last year the program spent approximately $150,000 on leaf collection, which yielded more than 3,586 tons of foliage. Crews picked up 19,127 cubic yards of leaves overall. Six thousand cubic yards of the total went to community gardens and programs, and 8,000 went back to residents through a leaf delivery program. The remaining 5,000 cubic yards of leaves went to commercial recyclers, such as Lane Forest Products, or compost in city parks.
But before Eugene residents start sweeping their leaves off the sidewalk, Public Works encourages locals to mulch or compost the foliage at home.
Anne Donahue, compost specialist for the city’s Solid Waste and Recycling Program, said the process is easier than most people think.
Mulching, one of five main composting methods, is a simple way to reduce weeds, conserve water and add organic matter back to garden beds, Donahue said. She added that all it takes is a one to two-inch layer of leaves on top of beds to help protect them from winter freezes or keep roots cool in the summer heat.
She said composted leaves, when worked into soil, provide precious organic matter to heavy clay soil, which is common in Eugene. For information on free compost workshops in Eugene, visit www.eugenerecycles.org.
As an avid gardener, Donahue requests leaves from the pickup program each year.
“To me, leaves are like gold,” she said. “Why send away this incredible resource when it is easy to compost them at home and use them as mulch in your garden?”
Those who want more compost material than they already have can apply to the leaf delivery program by filling out a request form at www.ci.eugene.or.us/pw/leaves/.
For all-year-round leaf maintenance, Eugene residents may also deposit leaves in the green yard debris container provided by most garbage companies, but residents should be careful not to confuse it with the standard black container.
“Putting leaves in the regular garbage can would be the last thing you would want to do,” environmental studies Professor Galen Martin said.
Although he currently lives on a property inhabited only by pine trees, Martin said he has been composting his garden and produce waste for as long as he can remember.
“By mulching at home, you are taking some responsibility for your waste,” he said. “Plus, you’re returning it to your own land.”
Martin said he still remembers a time when discarded leaves polluted local landfills with carbon dioxide and methane build-up. Although a large number of Eugene residents put their leaves out for collection instead of composting at home, Martin said it’s nice to know that the tons of foliage collected never go to waste.
“It’s a good lesson on how a waste product, under the right conditions, can become a valuable resource,” he said.
Students and community members can check their local collection week by calling the leaf collection hotline at 682­5383. The schedule is subject to change.
Jobanek said participating residents should place leaf piles in the street the weekend prior to scheduled collection. Piles should be at least 15 feet from parked cars and at least a foot from the gutter line to prevent urban flooding, but Jobanek also said the fewer parked cars the better.
“If at all possible, the more vehicles off the street, the more leaves we can reach,” he said.