Fall is upon us, and that means leaf season! Decaying organic materials like leaves are a major source of nitrogen and phosphorus in urban stormwater, contributing to harmful algal blooms, dead zones in waterbodies, and fish kills. Rain percolates through fallen leaves like tea bags in water, flushing nutrients down storm drains where it eventually reaches local waterways. 

But, you can help! Pick-up leaves in your yard, along your sidewalk, and in the curb in front of your home or business. Don’t sweep or dump leaves into the roadway as that can cause flooding. And, while street sweeping protects our waterways by removing the organic material that releases pollutants, the street sweeping leaves must be landfilled because litter is mixed in. By collecting leaves for yard waste, you're recycling nutrients and carbon back into the soil and helping to grow food and trees. Yard waste should be placed in paper yard waste bags or in your own personal barrel (with a red "Yard Waste Only" sticker on it). Request a sticker here.

The leaves and twigs collected in our Yard Waste program go to West Bridgewater, MA to make compost. The finished compost is used to grow food, support Cambridge's trees, and given away to Cambridge residents (see below for next giveaway). More than 140 tons of finished compost from our yard waste was used to plant 475 trees earlier this year. 

BONUS TIP: You can help pollinators by simply letting leaves sit in your garden bed. Learn more about the benefits here.

We're seeking a few more volunteers to help Cambridge Public School students sort their lunchroom waste.

Having adults present to guide students (and thank them) makes a big difference. Please fill out this form if you can volunteer to educate students.

Thank you in advance for sharing some of your time to empower students to help the earth every time they clean up after a meal.