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Saanich crews collect a mountain of leaves

Public works crews collected 6,150 cubic yards of leaves from 1,450 streets by Dec. 1
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Saanich’s 2020 fall leaf collection sees nearly 6,2000 cubic yards of mulched leaves collected between Oct. 26 and Dec. 1. (Devon Bidal/News Staff)

Every fall, Saanich Public Works crews travel all over the municipality collecting fallen leaves. This year crews have already collected enough mulched leaves to fill Commonwealth Pool twice

The Saanich leaf collection program kicked off Oct. 26 and in just over five weeks, the team of nine staff members cleared 6,150 cubic yards of leaves from 1,454 streets with three trucks. All the leaves collected are turned into mulch and delivered to parks, farms, gardens, restoration sites and vendors across Saanich.

Leaf mulch is also made available to residents on a first-come, first-served basis for free in Mount Douglas Park, Hyacinth Park and Playfair Park.

“Saanich wishes to express our gratitude to residents for helping us make leaf collection as smooth as possible,” said Kelsie McLeod, communications manager for the district.

Collection will continue through December as each street is done twice per season and, in order to ensure the process continues to run smoothly, the district is reminding residents wanting leaves picked up to follow specific guidelines.

Leaves should be piled no more than one metre from the roadside ahead of the street’s collection week, and while there is no limit to the number of leaf piles per property, leaves should be kept clear of sidewalks, bike lanes, catch basins, ditches and roadways.

McLeod also noted that large leaf piles should be covered with chicken wire or a tarp and residents should avoid parking in front of leaf piles as the collector truck needs unobstructed access.

Residents with excess leaves they’d like to remove from their property before or after their collection dates can add them to their green bins with tree needles, grass clippings and other garden waste not accepted in the leaf collection or drop them off at the Saanich Public Works Yard on McKenzie Avenue, McLeod said.

The district also recommends that residents check the schedule to confirm their leaf pickup day and sign up for reminders using the GreenerGarbage app.


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devon.bidal@saanichnews.com