Recycle Your Leaves
Composting at home is the best environmental choice for managing food and yard waste, including leaves. Please call Orange Community Recycling at 919-968-2788 for more information.
Seasonal Collection of Loose Leaves
From mid-October through mid-February, the Town of Chapel Hill will collect and haul away all leaves raked to the curb in piles. Under this program, residents may place loose leaves/pine straw, free of limbs and debris, at the back of the curb for collection. Please do not place your leaves in the street where they may interfere with traffic or drainage. In addition, we ask that you not block sidewalks, bike lanes, fire hydrants, or cover water meters. The Town will also deliver leaves to those requesting them for compost or mulch for gardening. This program keeps leaves out of the landfill, and we all benefit by saving landfill space and making use of a valuable material.
The program is simple. Chapel Hill Public Works crews start at one end of Town and make a complete circuit at least three times during the period from October through February to give all residents the same number of pick ups.
We recommend that you rake your leaves as early in the season as practical. This will help us to provide at least one collection for the entire Town prior to the Christmas season. The length of our collection cycle depends upon the number of leaf piles and the timing of their placement. The later leaves are raked to the edge of the street, the more difficult it will be for us to meet our objective.
There are four important things to remember about this program.
- We cannot make special pick ups.
- The leaf truck will collect leaves in your neighborhood at least once before Thanksgiving.
The exact schedule will depend on the weather, the amount of leaf fall and the number of people participating. Please check this page the first workday of each week for anticipated collection schedules.
- Not everyone will get a leaf pick up during Thanksgiving week or during Christmas week.
- Leaves may also be placed in 30 gallon, 50 pound weight limit, brown paper bags that are available at most hardware stores. Other options for leaf use or disposal are discussed below.
When will the leaf loader truck be in your neighborhood?
Between mid-October and mid-February the Town will post weekly updates online and show the approximate area to be covered during the coming week.
What if you want leaves delivered for mulch or compost?
Call the Chapel Hill Public Works Department at 919-969-5100 and request delivery of leaves. Residents of Chapel Hill will receive first priority. We prefer to keep deliveries within a one-mile radius of Town limits.
If you want leaves for mulch, when will they be delivered?
Leaves will be delivered based on the location of the work crews, not on the order of requests. We deliver in the areas in which we are collecting, to make our work more efficient.
If you get a delivery of leaves, how big a load will you get?
Each delivery is approximately 16 cubic yards. This is a lot of leaves, so be sure to consider how you plan to use the load before you request leaves. We cannot deliver a partial load.
When will the program end?
In late February. The exact date will be published on our web site in mid-February.
What other options are available for leaf disposal?
Residents may haul yard waste debris, including leaves, to the Orange County Landfill or Orange County Convenience Centers. Some charges may apply. For more information, please contact Orange County Solid Waste Management at 919-968-2788.
Residents may rent a 12 cubic yard container for yard waste on a daily or weekend basis. Public Works will deliver a bulk container to a residence, leaving it in a location that is accessible to the delivery truck and convenient to the resident. The rental rate for a yard waste roll-off container is $20 a day or $25 a weekend for a maximum of 2 days per month. If interested, please call 919-969-5100.
Residents may place leaves in yard waste roll cart or other rigid container for weekly curbside collection. Yard waste roll carts may be purchased for $47 each from the Town’s Public Works Department. Leaves may be placed in 30-gallon, 50 pound limit, brown paper leaf bags that are available at many hardware stores. We cannot collect any leaves in plastic bags.
Remember:
- No brush, limbs or debris are allowed in the leaf piles.
- Rake your leaves as early in the season as practical.
- Do not place your leaves in the street where they may interfere with traffic or drainage.
- Do not block sidewalks, fire hydrants or cover water meters.
What should you do with leaves during the rest of the year?
Leaves provide important nutrients to the soil. You can pile them around trees, put them in an out-of-the-way spot on your lot, or compost them with other yard waste and vegetable peelings. Call 919-968-2788 for compost information or to find out how to purchase a composting bin.
Leaves placed in yard waste roll carts, 30-gallon, 50 pound limit, brown paper leaf bags, or other rigid containers will be collected year round.