Calgary, AB,
22
September
2014
|
12:59
America/Denver

Tree debris cleanup makes great progress

The cleanup from the September snow storm made great progress over the weekend as crews began sweeps of the hardest hit communities.

Crews from Parks, Waste & Recycling Services, Roads, Water and Alberta Environment & Sustainable Resource Development completed sweeps in Renfrew, Bridgeland, Riverside, Crescent Heights and Rosedale removing tree branches and debris from streets and lanes. They also made headway in the communities of Lake Bonavista, Acadia, Scarborough, Hounsfield Heights and Briar Hill.

“We started on Saturday in the communities with the greatest amount of damage from the storm and are already making great progress,” said Nico Bernard, Tactical Operations Centre Manager. “Our goal is to do one complete sweep of the streets and lanes in all storm-affected communities to remove as much debris as possible before the next snowfall.”

The City will post information on calgary.ca identifying the communities where crews are working along with those that have received a complete sweep.

Crews are using a variety of equipment to collect debris including rear-loader garbage trucks and tandem trucks.

  • Citizens are asked to move their vehicles off the street and from back alleys where possible in targeted communities so crews can access the piles of tree branches and debris.
  • Stack tree debris neatly as close to the edge of your property without impeding roads, pathways or sidewalks. This includes both at the front of your property or back lane.
  • Citizens should watch for signs indicating the streets where crews are working.
  • Please give crews enough space to work safely and continue to watch for hanging branches and any hazards in your neighbourhood, parks and other public spaces.

The City’s goal is to complete one sweep of every heavily impacted community before the snow falls. Citizens are encouraged to bring branches not collected during the initial sweep to any of The City’s landfills or 32 Leaf & Pumpkin drop-off locations free of charge. Please do not mix tree debris with garbage or put in plastic bags. Citizens bringing leaves to drop-offs are asked to use paper yard waste bags as they can be mulched along with the other material.

For safety reasons, Leaf & Pumpkin drop-off locations may temporarily close to allow crews to remove debris. Staff onsite will direct citizens to the closest location while the clean-up is occurring.

Drop-off locations are for residential use only. Commercial haulers should take their loads to City landfills.

All tree branches and debris collected will be mulched for future use. As of September 22, City landfills have received 7.6 million kilograms of tree debris for mulching from more than 14,000 loads.

-30-