BOZEMAN — Fall is here, and as the trees turn vibrant colors, leaves are beginning to blanket the streets. Ever wonder what happens to all those leaves cluttering the roads? In Bozeman, there’s a well-orchestrated city program dedicated to collecting them — and it’s already underway.
Ever wonder what happens to all those fall leaves on Bozeman streets? The city's leaf collection program is pretty impressive - they collected 600,000 pounds last year
Earlier this week, I found myself behind a City of Bozeman truck collecting leaves. A quick phone call revealed that the city runs an extensive leaf collection program that’s more than just municipal maintenance.
“Everyone in the community gets involved. There are kids standing around looking at the operation,” said Neal Smith, Assistant Superintendent for the streets division here in Bozeman.
Smith invited me to ride along in his truck to see the process in action. We caught up with the leaf baler on North 21st Street, and Smith broke down how the operation works.
“It starts with posting notices 48 hours in advance so citizens know to move their cars.”
At 6 a.m. on collection day, parking enforcement officers issue tickets to cars still in the way.
Next, residents are asked to blow leaves from their yards into the street. City crews also blow leaves off boulevards. Residents can also bag leaves and set them out for pickup. The city’s leaf blowers then form large piles in the street.
From there, the baler comes in, compressing the leaves into wrapped bales. Each bale weighs about 2,000 pounds. Last year, crews made approximately 270 bales — around 600,000 pounds of leaves — and they expect to exceed that number this year.
A claw-equipped loader picks up the bales and places them into trailers. Any leftover leaves are scraped up by a push tractor or loaded into garbage trucks. Finally, a street sweeper makes a pass to finish the cleanup.
Once collected, most of the leaves are taken to the landfill, cut open, and sent to composting. But not all bales end up there.
“We’ve actually had some residents be like, ‘Hey, can we have a bale of leaves?’ and they’ll use them for their garden. We’ve hauled a couple out to a farm,” Smith said.
Beyond being an impressive operation, Smith stressed its importance for city infrastructure.
“We don’t want all the leaves and the debris in the waterway. If we get a steady rain, it’ll clog the intakes or cause a water main break,” he said.
To keep the program running efficiently, the city asks residents for cooperation.
“As long as we get good cooperation from the community — where we don’t have to swing out around cars or anything like that — it really helps,” Smith said.
Leaf pickup began Oct. 16 and will continue through Nov. 12. Routes for the collection can be found on the city’s website: https://www.bozeman.net/departments/transportation-engineering/streets/street-reports/fall-leaf-pickup
For residents not on the route, the City Shops Complex at 814 N. Bozeman Ave. will accept leaf drop-offs on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., with compost trucks and roll-off dumpsters available. Drop-off dates include:
Saturday, Nov. 1
Saturday, Nov. 8
Saturday, Nov. 15
