When Nature is a Litterbug

It’s fall in South Lake Union, and the many deciduous trees in our neighborhood are doing the thing that deciduous trees do in the fall – littering! 

Don’t get me wrong – I love the look of sidewalks and streets covered in the kraft-paper look of fall leaves.  But eventually they get pulverized, they rot, and they become a wet soggy mess.  Seattle has been blessed (or cursed – I haven’t decided) with a dry fall, so the leaves are a delight.  However, I’ve noticed that City workers, local businesses, and residents have been expending great amounts of energy to remove the drifts of leaves collecting in their driveways and along planted areas.  

It never occurred to me to pick up “One Leaf A Day” – I draw the line there, folks – nature was here first, whether we planted the trees or not.  And I do not object to a leaf the way I object to the similar look of a discarded paper bag.  I don’t feel that tug of responsibility that draws me to remove human detritus from my surroundings.  Walking down the street shuffling my feet through the piles of leaves on the sidewalk is one of the joys of fall.

That’s right: I am an apologist for nature.  So sue me.

Cities are not so forgiving.  Every day on my walk to work I see workers with large bags and leaf blowers.  They have been at it for weeks, and still I see no dent in the leafy covering.  It made me wonder – how much do municipalities pay for leaf removal during the fall, and where does that money come from?

It turns out that the answer varies from place to place.  A web search brought up a random sampling of information.  For example, the city of Portland, faced with a budget shortfall in 2010, instituted a $30 fee for leaf removal to cover about $800,000 in missing revenue. The move angered some residents, who had always enjoyed free leaf removal before.

In other parts of the country, leaf removal is included in city services and is paid for presumably by property tax revenue, but for homeowners who have to foot the bill themselves, costs average around $400 nationally, though they can be much higher in certain areas – according to HomeAdvisor,  Seattleites can expect to pay an average of $665 for leaf removal, with costs going as high as $1300 a season.

As for me, good old elbow grease with a rake suffices for my yard. My daughter and I love to jump in the leaves.  And the collected material makes great compost.

Enjoy the fall, folks, and appreciate the leaves while you can.