West Hartford's 2024 Leaf Collection Program, What You Need To Know

Town of West Hartford

WEST HARTFORD, CT — It's an annual rite of early November and it has nothing to do with campaigns, polling, and political arguments.

It's the day those leaves that have fallen to the ground are then picked up by the Town of West Hartford and taken away for good.

Starting on Monday, Nov. 4, that will start happening.

The Town of West Hartford offers a bagged leaf collection program for residential properties from Monday, Nov. 4, through Friday, Dec. 20.

Each week on folks' regular refuse collection day, crews will collect leaves bagged in 30-gallon biodegradable paper bags or the brown yard waste cart.

Participants can place leaves in 30-gallon biodegradable paper leaf bags or a specially marked yard waste carts purchased through the town.

The cart is the equivalent of three 30-gallon leaf bags. (To order a cart, call 860-561-8100 or visit https://westhartford.seamlessdocs.com/f/Barrel.) The cost is $90.

Leaf bags are typically found at hardware stores such as Lowe's, Home Depot, Ace, and grocery stores.

Leaf bags and carts must be free of grass, twigs, rocks, and trash and weigh no more than 40 pounds or they will be marked for rejection and not collected.

There is no limit to the number of bags a resident can place at the curb. No plastic bags or loose piles.

Residents should place leaf bags or carts at the curb by 6 a.m. on their trash collection day, or sooner, and a truck will come by to pick them up.

Crews will advance into other collection areas after completing their day's assignment and may pick up their bags before your trash day.

Don'ts

Brush will not be collected during this time and people should bring so-called "woody waste and yard waste: to the Yard Waste & Recycling Center (25 Brixton St.) for proper processing.

Also, do not place leaf bags and leaf piles in the street as they pose a traffic hazard, especially when the weather is windy or rainy, clog storm drains, which results in flooding, and impede snow-plowing operations.

The town's compliance officer routinely monitors collection areas and issues written warnings and fines for each day that leaves remain in the street.

Leaf bags and piles should not block pedestrian sidewalks, either.

Other leaf options

There are other options for bagging leaves.

For example, people can consider mulching their leaves with the mower.

"Make a couple of passes over your lawn until the leaves are reduced to fine leaf mulch," wrote the town. "This is a good source of nitrogen for your lawn, which will encourage growth in the spring."

Leaf compost also enriches the soil in vegetable gardens and flowerbeds.

If you don't want to wait for the weekly pick up, residents may bring their bagged leaves to the Yard Waste and Recycling Center at 25 Brixton St. and dispose of them there.

Leaves in plastic bags will need to be emptied in the appropriate area.

The facility is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Saturday from 7 a.m. to noon through December.

Yard Waste Permits

An annual permit is required to use the Yard Waste and Recycling facility.

Permits may be purchased online with a credit card and they may also be picked up or purchased in person with a credit card at West Hartford Public Works Office on Wednesday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. only. The office is closed for lunch from noon to 1 p.m.

Permit pricing is as follows: Passenger Vehicles, SUV, CUV, and Minivans w/o trailer - $10; Passenger Vehicles, SUV, CUV, and Minivans w/trailer - $15; Pick-up trucks, Full-size vans, w/o trailer - $25; and Pick-up trucks, Full-size vans w/ trailer - $35.

For more information on the 2024 Leaf Collection program, visit the Department of Public Works website or call 860-561-8100.