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(Washington, DC) Leaves are falling and the Department of Public Works is ready to deploy more than 200 employees Monday, November 7, 2011 to start collecting them. Leaf collection season runs through January 14, 2012, and every neighborhood in the District will have its leaves collected.
“Leaf collection is our most labor-intensive program,” said DPW Director William O. Howland Jr. “For two and a half months, our crews work six days a week, including Veterans Day and Thanksgiving Day, across the District. We give each neighborhood two, two-week collection cycles, so please check the leaf collection brochure, which was mailed to households receiving DPW trash/recycling collection services, or go online to leaf.dcgis.dc.gov learn your collection weeks.
“The program works best when residents rake their leaves into the treebox the weekend before the first day of their neighborhood’s collection cycles,” he said. “The crews move fairly quickly, especially in the opening weeks because there are fewer leaves. So to make sure your leaves are collected, the weekend before the collection cycle begins, put loose or bagged leaves in the treebox or place bagged leaves where you put your trash/recycling.” Mr. Howland also said this year DPW will compost bagged leaves as well as the loose leaves vacuumed from the treeboxes.
Here are some tips for a smooth-running leaf collection season:
- Look up your street’s collection schedule in the leaf collection brochure or at leaf.dcgis.dc.gov.
- Rake leaves into the treebox the weekend before your street’s collection cycles.
- Please – leaves only! Tree limbs, bricks, dirt, rocks, etc., will damage the equipment and delay collections.
- Prevent fires, parking problems and possible flooding by placing leaves in the treebox, not in the street. When it rains, leaves will block the storm drains and cause flooding. Please remove any leaves you see blocking the storm drains.
- If you choose to bag your leaves, please use paper bags. Plastic bags will be accepted but paper bags are preferred. You may place bagged leaves in the treebox or next to the trash/recycling container(s).
- Protect the safety of our crews by driving slowly around their work area or change your route and avoid them altogether.
Leaf collection season coincides with the beginning of snow season. Mr. Howland said, “I want to remind residents that the leaf collection crews are the backbone of the snow removal program. When snow and/or ice are predicted, we stop collecting leaves to convert our leaf equipment to snow plows. No leaves are collected until after the snow event ends. Sometimes predictions don’t result in snow, but we must have our snow equipment on the street regardless.”