The annual Leaf Recycling Program, held by the Philadelphia Department of Streets, is scheduled to begin on Monday, Nov. 7 and will run through Saturday, Dec. 17. The program helps reduce the amount of waste that goes to landfill. Recycled leaves are used for composting.

During the six-week program, mechanical leaf collection will be provided in areas known to have a heavy accumulation of leaves. Mechanical leaf collection crews will concentrate their efforts in designated boundaries each week. All leaves should be raked and ready for collection by 7:00 a.m. the day of mechanical collection. Leaves should be raked into the street by the curb’s edge (piling is not necessary). Continue Reading

The city will be conducting mechanical leaf collection for the area between 38th and 52nd Streets and from Baltimore Avenue to Spruce Street this Friday (Nov. 21), so here’s a reminder of what residents in this area should do.

All leaves should be raked and ready for collection by 7:00 a.m. on Friday. Rake leaves into the street by the curb’s edge (piling is not necessary). If possible, move your vehicle to an off-street parking location on your scheduled collection day, so crews can remove leaves along the curb line. Residents in mechanical areas can also drop-off bagged leaves. After the mechanical collection, please sweep and bag any remaining leaves and place them out for the weekly rubbish collections.

There will be only one mechanical leaf collection for each area this year. For more information regarding the 2014 Philly Leaf Recycling Program, click here.

The Streets Department’s 2014 Philly Leaf and Recycling Program will kick off on November 10 and will run through December 19. During the six-week program, leaves will be collected for composting purposes, such as fertilizing gardens and nourishing trees.

There will be changes in the way leaves are collected for recycling this year, according to an announcement by the Streets Department. Bagged leaves will no longer be collected curbside. Instead, residents can drop them off at specially designated locations throughout the city. Here are the bagged leaf collection locations in West and Southwest Philadelphia area (open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays from Nov. 10 through Dec. 19):

• 66th & Haverford Avenue
• 54th & Woodbine Avenue
• 43rd & Powelton Avenue
• 72nd & Buist Avenue

Bagged leaves may also be taken to any of the four Sanitation Convenience Centers (visit the Streets Department website for more information).

Another requirement for recycling is that bagged leaves will only be accepted in biodegradable paper bags because they can be processed for recycling along with the leaves. The Streets Department doesn’t provide biodegradable bags, but you can purchase them at your local home improvement or hardware store.  Continue Reading

Despite the recent run of warm weather, leaves are still falling across West Philly. The City’s curbside bagged leaf collection program continues for another two weeks, wrapping up on December 14.

If you have some leaves you want to get rid of, here’s some advice from the Streets Department:

• Leaves will only be collected in biodegradable paper bags. These bags can be processed for recycling along with the leaves. This reduces contamination in the recycling process, and allows crews to work more efficiently and more easily identify your bags as leaves. Leaves set out in other bags or containers may be collected as trash.

• Set leaf bags curbside next to trash and recycling on your trash day.

• Leaves placed in plastic bags will be collected as trash, not recycling.

• Do not mix trash or other recyclable materials with bagged leaves. This contaminates leaves and makes them unfit for recycling purposes.

• The Streets Department does not provide biodegradable bags. Residents may purchase them at their local home improvement stores. Monarch Hardware at 45th and Walnut, for example, sells them in packs of five for $3.59.

• Bagged leaves may also be taken to any of the three Sanitation Convenience Centers:

3033 S. 63rd Street (63rd & Passyunk Ave.)
Domino Lane and Umbria Street
State Road and Ashburner Street