Nevada County, Calif. August 27, 2019 – County of Nevada Office of Emergency Services is offering free residential green waste disposal in Floriston, September 28th and 29th, from 8:00 A.M.-4:00 P.M. to encourage residents to implement defensible space around the home.
This past May more than 1,000,000 pounds of green waste were collected in Western Nevada County as property owners limbed trees, thinned out vegetation, raked leaves, and cleared pine needles from the space adjacent to their homes. “We wanted to be sure we made this service available on the Eastside as well,” says Emergency Services Manager Jeff Pettit.
Two 30-yard bins will be available for residents to personally dispose of their green waste. As this program is self-service, participants are encouraged to bring tools they may need to unload materials on their own, such as gloves, tarps, rakes, etc. Residents using the green waste sites will be asked to fill out a brief questionnaire before unloading. Volunteers from the Floriston community will help monitor materials being disposed, and track the time residents spend developing defensible space around their homes. This data will be used as volunteer match and helps ensure the continued funding for similar events in the future. Residents are reminded that while this event is staffed by volunteers, participants must unload their own green waste into the bins provided.
The Office of Emergency Service strongly encourages residents refer to the tenets of CAL FIRE’s “One less spark” campaign online for more information about landscaping safety during fire season. (https://www.readyforwildfire.org/prevent-wildfire/equipment-use/) As this program is offered at the end of summer, it is imperative residents exercise caution when creating defensible space. A few quick tips include:
Mow only before 10:00 A.M.
Utilize spark arresters on all portable gasoline-powered equipment.
Never using lawn mowers, weed-eaters, chain saws, grinders, welders, tractors, or trimmers on a windy or excessively dry day.
Acceptable disposal items include green waste only, including: biomass consisting of all tree and plant trimmings, dead plants, weeds, leaves, and branches. Items with a diameter greater than 6 inches, tree stumps, root balls, dirt, rock, asphalt, concrete, sod, as well as hazardous and household waste will not be accepted.
The Residential Green Waste Disposal Program will be open to Nevada County residents free of charge, Saturday, September 28th and Sunday, September 29th, 8:00 A.M. – 4:00 P.M. at 22261 Juniper Street, Floriston, CA 96111.
For more information about how to implement defensible space around your home, please visit ReadyNevadaCounty.org.