Should you leave your leaves alone this fall?
WELLESLEY - As trees drop their leaves in New England and residents break out the rakes, could the solution be just to let the leaves alone? Could not bagging up the leaves be the environmentally responsible choice?
Can leaves be an environmental problem?
"I get hit with lots of leaves every year. It's a seasonal thing, and I've come to expect it," said Joe Zanchi, who takes a hands-on approach to cleaning his lawn. "I run around, and I'll clean them up with a blower. I'll gather them all up and put them in barrels."
For many, cleaning up the fall foliage is a big task.
"Pine needles, pine cones, acorns, oak leaves, maple leaves. .... If you leave them on your lawn, it makes a mess," said Zanchi.
Most leaves collected in Massachusetts are processed at composting facilities, but sometimes, they end up in landfills due to improper disposal or contamination, and that adds up nationally.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, in 2018, those landfills received more than 10 million tons of yard trimmings, eventually releasing large amounts of toxic chemicals into the Earth's atmosphere.
Leave The Leaves
MassWildlife is encouraging communities to Leave The Leaves, a program asking neighbors to allow fall foliage to naturally break down, adding nutrients to the soil and providing shelter for wildlife.
"This provides cover and insulation to insects, including pollinators like moths and butterflies, while also naturally adding nutrients back into your lawn," MassWildlife said in a statement.
Towns like Wellesley are on board.
"We love our trees in Wellesley, but they do create a maintenance issue in the fall," said Brandon Schmitt of the Wellesley Natural Resources Commission. Problems like clogging storm drains.
The Wellesley Natural Resources Commission now uses mowers to grind the leaves into mulch, which benefits the local parks.
"It builds soil; it helps the parks to retain nutrients," said Schmitt.
In Wellesley disposing of leaves is a personal choice. Zanchi said he likes the exercise.
"You're helping yourself out; you're getting some fresh air," he said. "There's all schools of thought on it."