Did You Know It’s Illegal To Do This With Leaves in Boise?

One of the most beautiful parts of living in the City of Trees? There's no shortage of beautiful fall colors to soak in or capture photos of. 

Walking beneath an incredible canopy of red, gold, and orange leaves is the primary reason that we've been prioritizing strolling down the Greenbelt to walk to lunch instead of getting in the car and hitting a drive-through. It's a peaceful (and functional) way to break up the workday.

At least, we find the leaves peaceful. If you're a homeowner who's got a relatively significant amount of trees in or around your property, you may disagree with us. According to Smoky Mountain's "Fall Foliage Prediction Map" the Treasure Valley is still a few weeks away from hitting its peak color. That's expected to happen the week of Halloween and then? The clean-up starts!

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What are you going to do with all of those leaves? Stuff them in those cute trash bags that look like Jack-O-Lanterns and use them as Halloween decorations for your yard? Let them decompose beneath the first blanket of snow this winter? Sweep them into the street in front of your home?

That last one might sound appealing, but you should absolutely NOT do that! Leaves are technically considered "debris" and under Idaho code, it's illegal to deposit debris along any highway, street, alley or easement used by the public for public travel. If you willfully do so and it impedes traffic or creates hazardous driving conditions, you could be charged with a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $2,500, up to six months in prison or both.

So, what's the best way to get rid of leaves in Boise? If you're part of the city's "Curb It" compost program, you can fill up your compost cart with them, wheel it out to the curb and place any additional paper leaf bags next to it so that they're picked up on your regular pick-up day. The city just asks that you don't set out more than 10 bags weekly so they can efficiently manage the pick-up.

There are also FREE drop-off sites where you can drop off your full PAPER leaf bags! According to the City's website, they'll eventually be composted. Here's a look at where they are and when you can use them.